Stark Contrast
by OrangeGalen
Summary: Ruby gets sent into another reality and things are drastically different. Hunters control the Grimm and use them to keep the Kingdoms in line. The White Fang and other rebels struggle against them and Ruby finds that her best allies include Roman Torchwick and Cinder Fall, with her team as her greatest enemy. And all this isn't even counting for the other Ruby who took her place...
1. The Red-Black Crystal

**Hello fellow readers/writers, OrangeGalen here with another RWBY story! I know, I should probably finish some of my other ones, but my brain refuses to let new ideas go. So here's this story!**

**This came from a small brainstorm I had, and within half an hour I fleshed out the ideas behind this story, with some modifications later. Basically it boils down to a _'what if'_ story. I think this'll be a fun one.**

**Characters will be added to the list when they appear.**

***Warning* This story is rated 'M' for a reason starting chapter 4. It contains and is not limited to harsh vulgar language, gore and violence, sour lemons (or at least mentions of it), torture, and other things. Not for the faint of heart (or the easily offended). **

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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**Edited: 9/3/17. Small changes and touch up, cleaning up house. **

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"So… whatchya' got there Weiss?"

It had been three days since the Mountain Glenn mission and the subsequent Grimm breach in Vale. The days had been hectic, with clean up and rebuilding taking precedence so daily life could go back to normal. Many teams had been called back to Vale to hunt out any of the remaining Grimm still lurking around the city, with Team RWBY being one of them after they got a good night's rest.

There had been positives and negatives to the breach. Positive: the White Fang had been stopped for the moment. Negative: RWBY was still no closer to finding out the reason for why the Fang did what they did. Positive: Torchwick had been captured and was now sitting in a cell. Negative: they had found out that Ozpin was no longer in control of security for the Vytal Festival, which was disheartening. Positive: the Grimm invasion had been stopped and, as of right then, the monsters had all been hunted down. Negative: there were many civilian casualties.

It was a very mixed and confusing series of events for Team RWBY, which is why they were now taking advantage of some downtime. Or at least most of them were.

Any moment that she had time to spare, Weiss would be down in the Dust workshop at Beacon, working on something. RBY would periodically check in on her to make sure she was alright, but what would usually happen was that Weiss would give a short reply (or a grunt in some instances) and then say 'now be quiet, I have to concentrate' and brush off anything else. Every once in a while they would hear an explosion of sorts and muffled cursing from Weiss when they were outside the door, but it wasn't that big of a concern.

Team RWBY, over the course of their time in Beacon, had learned that Weiss had a side hobby of experimenting with Dust. It was completely understandable since she was a Schnee from the _Schnee_ Dust Company. She spent most of her life with the stuff revolving around her, so it was natural that she would use and experiment with it. Weiss would try different combinations of Dust to see what results she would get. Some combinations were recorded to make certain effects, but Weiss would try if she could a to make a more potent result with different mixtures or amounts. Recently she started trying to make new kinds of Dust crystals.

Weiss never told them what she was tying to accomplish, and it wasn't from a lack of questions on RBY's part. Weiss was just being oddly secretive -not that she hid herself from the team; she was out and about on occasion (no major food fights so far) and interacted with the Beacon population as normal when she was out and about.

Ruby was slightly worried about Weiss, but her BFF assured her that she was fine and just really focused on her project. Not in so many words mind you, just general inference. Ruby knew Weiss by now and that Weiss wasn't keen on the whole 'sharing your feelings' thing. Problems, yes, feelings, no. But Ruby felt she could get a good reading on Weiss by now.

The other two members of Team RWBY were also recovering from Mountain Glenn. Blake finally seemed to have a weight off her chest since the Breach, probably because the White Fang had been stalled in their plans. She knew her former organization was still out there, but was not a pressing concern for her now that was making her loose sleep. It was a slight relief to have her back in the dorm in her own bed instead of sleeping in the library.

Yang however seemed to have switched positions with her partner and now was plagued by strange dreams. She retold the story on the train on how she faced that girl with the pink and brown eyes and hair (her name was Neo) and was beaten (which was another point of irritation for her), but the girl was gone when she came too. Yang saw a glimpse of a person's sword just as she woke up, but not much else. However, that woman was appearing in her dreams too. She couldn't remember what she looked like except black hair and red eyes or what happened in those dreams.

Ruby knew that whatever happened that day changed everything. Vale wasn't as safe as she thought it was. And she blamed herself for the deaths of those people, both civilians and White Fang members.

She remembered later that night when they were resting how she knocked a bunch of W.F. members off the train. It wasn't until later that she realized that no one made it out of those tunnels before they were sealed up. The Grimm took care of that. She was the direct cause of their deaths, as it was just as much her fault they died as if she took her blade to them. She, Ruby Rose, had killed. Not directly, but there was little difference. She condemned them to death the moment they fell off the train.

Ruby couldn't tell the other members of her Team just yet; the memories were too fresh, just like her nightmares.

Besides, they needed to find out what Weiss was doing.

After three days, Weiss had finally decided to let them come in and see what she was doing. Yang led the opening question as the group neared Weiss' workplace.

"This is what I've been working on," Weiss gestured to the table, which was littered with ground Dust, a sealed box, a bag, and dead crystals. The thing about Dust is one can tell when it's unusable because it doesn't have that internal glow to it. There were quite a few dead crystals still there.

On the side of the workbench was one of the Schnee Dust compressors, used to make the powdered grain Dust into Crystals, depending on the mold. It could heat up or cool down the dust depending on its volatility towards either extreme. It looked like it was used a lot as there were soot marks all over it. Plus the ruined one in the corner was probably a reason.

"Wow Weiss, I never took you as this much of a hands on person," Ruby said.

"I can be on occasion," Weiss said a little smugly.

"So what is it that you've been working on?" Blake asked.

"Well, ever since the Breach I was thinking of different combinations of Dust to try out. I've tried mixing different Dust together, and forming crystals, and I think I have a few things I want you all to try that I can tell you aren't in stores." She went over and picked up the bag and opened it, pulling out something.

"These are yellow, orange, and red ground dust cartridges that you should be able to use with Ember Celica to make it have a little more… 'oomph'. Each vial has the same amount of Dust as one of your shells, so you just need to change the grain." Weiss handed Yang a set of vials with the dust grain in it.

"Wow, that's amazing! Definitely more _Yang_ for my lien." She said, punning the common saying.

"Now that I think about it, I don't know why I gave her that," Weiss muttered before reaching inside the bag again. "Blake, here's more Dust magazines that you could use later." Weiss gave Blake three clips of Dust grain. Blake took them with a nod and put them in her back pouch.

"What'd I get?" Ruby asked excitedly, bouncing slightly.

"I was hoping that you could help me with that." Weiss said and turned around, putting the bag down. She unlocked the box on the desk and opened it, then gently picked up something wrapped in a cloth and handed it to Ruby. "Be careful with that, I don't want you making a crater this time."

"It was only once…" Ruby opened the cloth and gasped. Inside was a perfectly cut Dust crystal, but what made it unique was that it was a pure combination of red and black. "Ooh, it's my colors!"

"Weiss, did you actually make _Black Dust_, and then combine it with Red Dust?" Blake asked curiously. "No one's been able to make Black Dust and every time they've tried, they've failed."

"I did," Weiss said, a little proudly.

"How?" Yang asked, knowing how finicky Dust can be to new combinations. With her semblance she's set off more than a few vials of Dust before in class.

"Well, I wanted to try and make a Black Dust crystal for some time, like all Dust experimenters, and thought about the colors of dust. I took some elements from painting and used Red, Green, Blue, Purple, Yellow, and Cyan Dust to make it. Let me tell you it was a pain."

"I can imagine," Blake said.

"I needed to add exact amounts of each grain before I could even think about crystalizing it, then I needed to mix it together carefully then compress it until it was at a constant 754 degrees during the crystal formation process."

"Why 754?" Yang asked.

"Because if it was at 753 it wouldn't form together, and if it was at 755 it would blow up." Weiss deadpanned. "That was fun discovering that little fact," she said, gesturing to the ruined Dust compressor in the corner.

"Ah. So that's what we were hearing."

"I have a bunch of pure Black Crystals, but… I need to get rid of them," Weiss decided.

"What? Why?" Ruby asked.

"Aside from the fact that I can assure you they have no elemental or external effects, and as such are unusable in weapons, they just felt… off." She shook her head and handed a Black Dust crystal to Blake.

Blake took it and held it for a moment, then shuddered and handed it to Yang. "You're right, it just feels off. Not revolting, just off."

"Yea, totally right on that," Yang said and handed the Dust to Weiss.

"Aww, but I want to feel it," Ruby pouted.

"Sorry Rubes, but I don't think you should handle that when you have the Red-Black in your hand."

Ruby pouted, but agreed. _She's probably right. _

Weiss took the crystal and put it in the box, then locked it up again. "I can understand why most of the research into making Black Dust was scrapped and restricted. But me, being me, could get access to them… In any case," she changed subjects slightly, "to get the crystal to become Red-Black, I needed to pulverize a Black crystal into grain, then mix in another carefully measured amount of Red grain then re-crystalize it again. The end result is what you see here."

"So what does it do?" Ruby asked, holding it up to the light. The red part was partially transparent so her face was lit up with red highlights.

"I don't actually know." Weiss admitted.

"Why didn't you try it yet?" Ruby asked.

Weiss grimaced as if she ate something sour. "Well, since it is your gift, I figured that you should be the one to test it."

"Wait, wait wait wait wait wait… You want _me_ to use Dust?" Ruby asked to clarify.

"Now you understand why I'm _so_ enthusiastic about this." Weiss said sarcastically. Ruby knew how to use Dust bullets and the theory behind Remnant's life-blood, but that was about it. She barely scraped by on the practical side of Dust Application.

"Uhh, are you sure it's a good idea Weiss?" Yang asked.

"No, but frankly I know and trust Ruby enough to _not_ blow up the school." Weiss said.

"What about the first day here?" Blake asked.

"That was before we knew each other." Weiss defended her change of heart.

"Awww, thanks Weiss!" Ruby tried to glomp her in a hug but Weiss stopped her.

"Ah ah ah, no. Stop unless you _want_ to blow up." Weiss said.

"Ah, right." Ruby stopped her attempts and stepped back.

"I trust you know what to do?"

"Uhhh…. Sure?"

Weiss stared at Ruby. "You inspire me with confidence. Use your Aura to energize it."

"Alright, here I go!" _Let's do this!_ Ruby held the Red-Black crystal in her hand and concentrated on her Aura. Something all hunters in training learned was how to feel and manipulate their Aura like a second skin. She quickly felt her Aura pulse through her and worked it so that a bit of it would go into the crystal she was holding.

She missed the calls of Weiss to the rest of her team to 'back up back up' as she did so.

Ruby could feel the crystal activating as it was drawing on her Aura, but nothing was happening, so she put more Aura into it. Still nothing, so she tried again.

She was startled out of her concentration when Weiss grabbed her arm, accidentally sending another pulse of Aura into the crystal. "That's enough Ruby," she said sternly, "we don't want you completely exhausted now."

Ruby shrugged, not feeling tired. "I'm fine."

Weiss looked at the crystal in Ruby's hand. "So nothing then. It is glowing brighter though…" She looked around for a moment before going to a drawer and pulling out a vial of White Dust. "Here, sprinkle this on and maybe you'll get an effect.

White Dust (not to be confused with the pale grey wind Dust) had been found to have more medicinal and healing properties, and also bolstered a person's raw Aura strength for a time. White Dust is also the easiest to mix with other Dust and can act as a catalyst or accelerant for different effects, which is why Weiss was giving it to Ruby at the moment.

"Let's try this one more time, then call it quits."

"Sure thing!" Ruby took the vial and gave a couple of taps to get some of the White Dust grain onto the crystal to coat it a bit, then re-capped the vial and handed it to Weiss.

Ruby took a breath and closed her eyes again, concentrating on her Aura again. She let it flow through her and into the crystal. She could feel that the crystal was doing something, and that the energy was reaching a critical mass, but it still needed a bit more.

Peaking open her eye and keeping the flow of Aura going, she saw that the crystal was glowing and the White grain was luminescent on top of that as well. It was about as bright as a flashlight, or as a lantern, but Ruby could feel that it needed a bit more before it did… whatever it was going to do.

_Just a little more, then I'll stop. As much as I'd like to find out what this crystal does, with the amount of Aura I'm pumping into it there's a high chance that it _will _make a crater, regardless of what it's actually _supposed _to do_. Ruby continued for a few more seconds, and when nothing was happening, she started to cut down the Aura stream.

However, this was where things went downhill.

As Ruby was cutting down the Aura flow, Weiss grabbed her arm again. This startled Ruby enough so that her Aura flow reversed and increased, pumping in a bunch of Aura at once because of her surprise. This caused the crystal to finally reach that critical mass and start glowing in her hand even brighter than before.

"Weiss!" Ruby shouted at her for the distraction, and the heiress let go of Ruby's arm. But it was a little too late as the crystal let out one giant burst and shattered, releasing the Aura inside and activating the crystals effects.

A bright flash came through the room and Ruby crumpled to the ground.

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_Ohhh, my head. What happened? I'm tired, that's strange. Aura use?_

"-se. Rose. Wake up you bitch."

A sudden stinging sensation on her cheek caused Ruby's eyes to shoot open. "Gyah! I'm awake I'm awake!"

Ruby looked up and saw her sister's eyes staring back at her. But they were that dangerous shade of red that Ruby had grown to know that meant someone or something was about to get smashed.

"The fuck happened?" Yang asked, her eyes still red.

Ruby frowned at Yang's language. Usually when she cussed Yang would try and censor herself around Ruby, and only when things were really bad. Ruby ignored it for now and focused on the question. "I don't know. The crystal just exploded after I pumped in too much Aura and I guess I fell unconscious."

Yang growled and stood up off of Ruby. "Still as stupid as ever. Didn't Mom teach you about Aura usage?"

"Well if Weiss hadn't startled me that probably wouldn't have happened!" Ruby shot back, slightly hurt at her sister's insult. _Wait… Mom?_

Yang frowned in confusion. "The fuck are you talking about? Snow Bitch wasn't anywhere near you."

"Hey, don't call Weiss that Yang, it's not nice." Ruby said, defending her partner, forgetting her growing question about their mom. _Weiss and Yang may still have some issues but they're not_ that _bad._

Ruby was shocked when Yang laughed, "'Not nice?' That's rich coming from you Rose."

"Hey, Yang, calm down. What's wrong with you?" Ruby asked.

Yang's red eyes suddenly focused on Ruby's silver ones. "We are not on a first name basis Rose. I thought I beat that into you when you were eight."

Ruby was shocked once more. "What?" _When I was eight you treated me to go to my first weapon shop, then baked me two sheets of cookies. There was no beating involved at all. What's going on?_

A sudden hand came on Yang's shoulder with a black fingerless glove over it. "It's not her fault Xiao Long," came Blake's calm voice, "I think she's been affected by the Dust."

"What do you mean?"

"Her cape's red." Blake gestured to Ruby.

"Well, yea, it's always been red." Ruby said, confused.

Blake stared at her blankly.

"Snow Bitch, what did you do with that crystal and what did it do to Rose?" Yang shouted.

"I already told you, you brute," came the snotty voice of Weiss from behind Ruby this time, "It was something new I made and thought it needed White Dust to use. As for what happened to Mistress, I don't know."

As everybody descended into an argument, Ruby had one thought on her mind.

_What happened?_

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**Well, what do you think? Things will be different and confusing, just as they are for Ruby, but it'll clear up later. **

**Just a warning, chapters will be updated sporadically, so please don't hold your breath for the next chapter.**

**So please let me know what you think by Reading, Reviewing, Favoriting, and Following (R.R.F.F.)**

**See ya**

**-OrangeGalen**


	2. Grimm Pit

**Hello everybody! Thank you for those that reviewed, favorited, and/or followed, which is quite a surprising number to me. Thanks! Here's the second chapter of Stark Contrast, and this came out sooner than I thought it would. I'm having fun with this and riding the energy while it lasts!**

**Anyway, more at the bottom, so here's the chapter!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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**Edit: 11/12/15. Small changes and touch up. **

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Considered Chapter titles: Wait, what?... huh?

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"You should have tested it out before you gave it to Rose," Yang shouted at Weiss.

"I did, you slut! I even tried the White Dust as well for your information! If you had been paying attention to that instead of ogling Belladonna's ass, you would know that!" Weiss shouted back. "It only worked for Mistress, since I made it for her anyway."

"And you'll do whatever she tells you too, won't you, otherwise…" Blake said condescendingly before she trailed off suggestively.

Weiss' eye twitched and she lifted a hand to rub her scar, but stayed silent, glaring at Blake.

"Yea, I thought so." Blake said with a sneer.

Ruby was so confused at the moment it wasn't even funny. _I was fine one moment, and then the crystal shattered and I got knocked out. Then when I woke up, Yang seems to hate me now, Blake's more vindictive (yay me for fancy words!), and Weiss is… almost the same before she lightened up,_ she admitted before she got back on track._ What happened to them?_

"Whoa, hey guys, let's calm down here. What's going on?" Ruby said, trying to figure out her own question.

Yang rolled her eyes, "That's what we're _trying_ to figure out here Rose. Obviously something went wrong with the Dust and did something to you. Now if your Ice Queen bitch would figure that out sooner rather than later that'll be great."

"Well, I feel fine. You're all the ones acting strangely," Ruby pointed out, once again ignoring the vulgarity. "Maybe the Dust affected you guys instead of me?"

"Right," Blake drawled, "and the Dust is the reason why your entire outfit changed."

"It's not the entire thing," Weiss muttered semi-defensively.

"Huh?" Ruby looked down at herself. _My boots are fine, combat skirt looks good as always, corset's tied up correctly, got my sweetheart with me, and… Mom's cloak that she gave me…that's fine, no holes or tears whatever. _She shook her head and looked up, "Nope, nothing's wrong with me."

She had two sets of narrowed eyes, and one cautious pair looking at her after that statement, from Blake, Yang, and Weiss respectively. Blake started counting off, "One: Your eyeliner is purple now. Two and three: Your cloak and leggings have switched colors. Four: You're being a hell of a lot 'nicer' than you've ever been."

Ruby scowled. _All of those are just normal parts of my outfit. Hasn't Blake ever… never mind. It's the Dust, it has to be. It's affected everyone else. _She paused and took a second glance at the three of them. _They're the ones that look different though._ Weiss skirt was a little longer and not as wide, and had a slit down the side for maneuverability. She was also wearing a red and black collar around her neck with what suspiciously looked like a rose embroidered on the front. Specifically _her_ rose.

Blake wasn't wearing her bow so her kitty ears were on full display for the world to see. The ribbon wrapped around her right arm was longer and went up to her shoulder, and the metal brand on her left was wider, covering most of her upper arm. She was also wearing fingerless gloves on her hands as well. Her vest was a little shorter and showed off more of her midriff.

Yang's vest was even tighter and shorter, showing off even more skin than before. Her boots were brown at the tops, but transitioned to black the lower it went. The most surprising thing Ruby saw was that she had a dragon tattooed onto her right leg that was yellow, gold, orange, and brown that stretched over all her visible leg skin length.

"Seriously, I'm fine. You're the ones that are dressed up and acting strangely," Ruby pointed out.

"_We're_ the ones that are fine; you're just being your irritating regular self." Yang said.

"Okay, _I_ think the Dust did something to _you_ all, and _you_ think that the Dust did something to _me_, so why don't we figure out what exactly happened?" Ruby said. _Either that or I'm hallucinating. Oh Oum, maybe the Red-Black crystal was a hallucinogen and I'm high! Definitely different than what I thought it would be like- not that I would ever do something like that! Yang would ground me so hard I'd never see sunlight again! _

Yang rolled her eyes, "Whatever." She went over and grabbed a chair and sat in it. Blake just leaned against the wall. Weiss strangely enough shuffle-walked over to Ruby.

"Do you need anything Mistress; water perhaps?" She asked. _Mistress? Okay, where did_ that _come from? That's just _wrong_ on so many levels…_

"I'm good. And Weiss, we're _teammates_. Why are you calling me mistress? That's a little freaky…" Ruby said.

Weiss' eyes widened. "I'm sorry for bothering you Mistress." She _bowed_ and backed up rapidly. Ruby was seriously creeped out now.

"Okay, yea, something's definitely wrong here."

This time it was Blake that spoke up. "Fine, since everyone is pussy-footing around the subject- shut up Firecracker," she cut Yang off before she could start, "I'll deal with this. Rose; what happened from your perspective."

"Well, Weiss gave me a Red-Black crystal and I coated it in the White Dust and was putting my Aura into it to activate it but decided not to risk it after it was not doing anything but then Weiss distracted me and I pumped a little too much Aura into the crystal and it flashed and I got knocked unconscious then Yang… wait," Ruby said all that in one go before she paused and realized something, "did you _slap_ me?" _If she did then it would explain why my face is stinging right now. But Yang would never hit me like that. _

"Yea, it was a helluva lot more fun since you weren't putting up a fight this time." Yang said with a cackle that was brimming with malice. _This time? What?_

"That wasn't what happened," Blake said. "Schnee didn't get anywhere near you Rose, you just went ahead and pushed your Aura into the thing after you got the White Dust."

"Why do you keep calling me Rose?" Ruby asked. "It's like we're strangers to each other now."

"And that's another thing off about you, you've done a complete about-face in personality," Blake pointed out. "The first day as a team you _commanded_ us to use your last name except for Xiao Long, who just uses it to piss you off."

Ruby shrugged, "Why would that make me mad? It's my last name. And why would I make you call me by my last name? It's _Ruby_."

"Okay Rose, this isn't funny anymore," Yang said, "not that it was to begin with, so you can drop the act now. We know how much you hate your birth mother, so just cut it out."

"My birth mother? Summer? What do you mean?" Ruby questioned. _Why did Yang say it like that? She was a mom to both of us: Super-Mom in fact. More than Yang's mom anyway. _

Yang's hair glowed and wisps of flame started coming off it. If her eyes weren't already red, they would have changed by then. "Don't speak that whore's name! May she rot in hell for all I care!" Yang growled. Ruby was shocked. _I've never heard Yang say a bad word about Mom unless it was how she left us…_ Ruby knew the truth, but jus couldn't say it. The pain was still there.

Blake and Weiss were looking at Ruby as if they didn't know who she was anymore. Ruby was much the same way at them. "I'm surprised at you Mistress, usually you can't stand the thought of that woman," Weiss said.

"This isn't funny anymore, alright?" Ruby said, taking a step back, trying to get herself under control. "Let's just go back to our room, wait this out and forget this happened."

"Alright Mistress." Weiss said, with Blake snickering.

"And please stop calling me that!" Ruby pleaded.

Weiss backed up with a half apologetic; half confused look on her face. "As you wish." Blake snickered again and Weiss turned on Blake, "How about I give you a scar to match mine?" She snapped.

"Rose is the only one that can give me a scar like yours, and frankly, you asked for it in the first place." Blake retorted.

"Just like how you are?" Weiss growled as she unsheathed Myrtenaster.

Blake cocked an eyebrow and reached causally for Gambol Shroud on her back.

Ruby shook her head. _Seriously, any moment now Dust, wear off. Don't take your time._

Right then, Yang's scroll went off. Yang answered it, "Yea what?" She immediately paled, "Oh, Miss Goodwitch, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it like that." Weiss snorted. There was a silence and Yang's face regained its color. "Yea, _she's_ with us," Yang growled, and then looked up at Ruby, "Did you forget to turn on your scroll Rose?"

_Seriously, you can stop with the act now please._ Ruby reached into her pocket and took out her scroll. "Nope, it's on."

"She says it's on," Yang answered the question. There was another silence. "Alright, I'll get her ass over there." Yang hung up and looked at Ruby again. "Apparently your Grimm are running ape-shit all over the place."

Ruby blinked. "My what?"

"Dear fuckin' Monty, we don't have time for your shit Rose. Head on down to the Grimm Pit and get your mutts under control. Oum knows why you're obsessed with Beowolves, although that Nevermore balances it out a bit."

"Wait, what?" Ruby's head was spinning. _What does she mean, 'get my Grimm under control?' I don't have any Grimm; it's impossible to capture Grimm for long periods of time. I don't even know how Professor Port captures his. Does he wrestle them? And where's this Grimm pit? _

"Grimm, yours, Grimm Pit, GO!" Yang said as she stepped closer, and on the last word, she grabbed Ruby and shoved her to the door.

"But I don't even know where to go!" Ruby cried out.

"Fucking hell Rose, did that crystal give you amnesia? Let's go since our esteemed leader has no clue what the fuck she's doing." Yang said to the other two members of their team as she grabbed Ruby roughly by the cloak and drug her out the door. Blake and Weiss followed.

"Yaaaang! I can walk myself!" Ruby moaned as she was dragged through the hallways.

"I'm not even trusting you with something as simple as that," Yang growled. "Honestly, if you didn't have to take care of your Grimm, we'd have another sparing match right now. Oh, I'd beat you so hard…" Yang trailed off as she became lost in a daydream.

Ruby took advantage of that and got out of Yang's weakened grasp. "Look, just take the lead and I'll follow you. How had can it be for you to be civil right now?" Ruby was starting to get annoyed.

"Very," Weiss deadpanned.

Yang just grunted and continued walking. "Ahh man, really wish I knew what was going on," Ruby moaned to herself. She followed her sister, who was acting less and less like it, in silence, trying to figure out what was going on.

Beacon was the same, except the people looked edgier than before. She recognized some people from different classes, but they were also different, and had slightly different weapons than she remembered.

The path that they took led them outside to where Ruby knew was a rocky plain. The reality of what was there surprised her though. _This wasn't here the last time I checked._

For over a square mile, there was a hole in the ground, filled with pens and chains, all holding Grimm. Beowolfs, Boarbatusks, Creeps, Ursi, you name it. Some were chained down, but the rest of them weren't putting up any resistance and were just walking around their Dust wire enclosures.

Ruby blinked. _Why are we keeping this many Grimm? And why aren't they all in cages?_

Ruby really didn't have time to worry about it as she noticed a rather large commotion close to where they were. There were Hunters and Huntresses trying to subdue a rather large number of Beowolfs without actually killing them, which was strange and difficult as the Beowolfs were not attacking, but watching, striking when a Hunter got too close. She noticed that most of the Beowolfs were close to Alpha status, with large potions of their bodies covered in the bone plates and spikes, signifying that they were 'B' class Grimm and smarter than your average Grimm.

"Well, looks like we got here just before things got too bad," Weiss commented. After a moment, she said, "Well Mistr- uhh, Rose, what are you waiting for?"

"Huh? What?" Ruby broke out of her stupor and looked at Weiss.

"Get control of them." Weiss said as if it were natural.

"Yea, and how am I supposed to do that?" Ruby said sarcastically. Maybe the wrestling idea isn't too far off.

"You don't remember how to control your Grimm?" Weiss asked, surprised.

"Not surprising," Yang muttered.

"Well I didn't know I _had_ Grimm until today, nor have I ever _had_ Grimm!" Ruby shouted. "It's impossible to control them!"

"Where have you been the last eighty years?" Yang questioned sardonically. "Maybe that crystal did give you amnesia."

"Wait… if says that she doesn't have control over them…" Blake started.

There was silence. Then, "Fuck, they're wild then, aren't they?" Yang muttered.

"How is that even possible though? They're not dead and Rose isn't either." Blake said.

"In any case, she could use a Black crystal and recapture them; after all, they were, or are her Grimm." Weiss offered.

"Black Crystal?" _Didn't Weiss make them then use them to make the Red-Black crystal? What does that have to do with right now? She said she was going to get rid of them, so why is she mentioning it? _

"Goddamnit, it's what we use to capture Grimm Rose! Get your head out of your ass!" Yang yelled.

Ruby growled and turned to Yang, bracing herself to do something that has only happened on a rare occasion. "Yang, as your sister, I would deeply appreciate it if you'd stop yelling at me, otherwise I'd take you up on that spar right now. And as I recall, you've never beaten me before. Keep that in mind." _Partially true, but they've ended in a draw more often than in an actual win._

Weiss smirked. "Finally, some of the old Ruby shows up!"

"Never beaten you before? That's a load of Ursa shit and you know it!"

"Shut up!" Ruby yelled. "This isn't the time or the place for this. Now lets go kill some Grimm." Ruby pulled out Crescent Rose and put it into rifle mode.

"Where are your Crystals?" Weiss asked, and then stopped, "Oh wait, you left them back in the Dust room, now I remember."

"Kill them? Are you sure you want to do that? You've spent years gathering those Grimm-" Blake started.

"What are we?" Ruby interrupted, not listening anymore. "We're huntresses. It's our job to kill Grimm. If you aren't going to help, then back off." Ruby growled, seriously annoyed with her so-called team. _This is worse than when Weiss was going on and on about Blake being with the White Fang._ Without waiting for a response, Ruby leapt down the little lip of the pit and started towards the escaped Grimm. She pulled back the bolt once on Crescent Rose and chambered a round, then took aim at a Beowolf through the scope. She stabilized herself, bracing for the recoil. _At this point, I don't need myself rocketing backwards. _

She fired once, and the Dust round sailed straight and true into the Beowolf's red eye, causing its head to explode into a bloody Grimm mess as the high-impact Dust sniper round passed through it. The Hunters that were around that particular Grimm looked back in surprise, looking for where the round came from.

Ruby continued walking and aimed at another Beowolf, this time at its mouth. She fired once, causing its lower jaw to be blasted off. When it turned to look at her, she fired a second round through the roof of its now exposed mouth, once again causing its head to explode.

The other Beowolfs now noticed this new threat, and seeing that she was by herself, chose to attack her. _Prey on the weak, the small and helpless. Except this girl is a warrior inside. _Ruby was literally shivering with anticipation for the fight.

Just as the Beowolfs were about to maul her, she activated her semblance and jumped up, clearing them by at least ten feet and leaving behind a cloud of red petals. Crescent Rose spun around and another Beowolf lost its head with the help of a Dust round. Ruby then unfolded her sweetheart all the way as she came down and fired another shot into the air, accelerating her downward and impaling a Beowolf in the skull with the spike at the end, driving it into the ground.

The next one attacked her, so Ruby pulled the end of her sweetheart out and spun it in a down-up diagonal, hooking the point of the scythe into the Beowolf's jaw. The momentum carried over and she actually partially flipped the Grimm, flinging it to the ground. Once it stopped, Ruby took another shot and hit the Beowolf point-blank in the chest, causing a hole the size of two fists to appear. She used the recoil to jump and spin backwards.

She landed in front of another Beowolf who was slashing with its claw. Ruby semblanced away and hooked Crescent Rose onto it's left leg and fired, cutting the leg off. Before it could fall all the way down, Ruby brought the scythe up and jumped up onto it's back and fired, separating its head from its body.

She landed and saw that the other Beowolfs were watching and considering her, since she had just taken out six in about half a minute. Ruby looked around and saw that a bunch of other hunters were just staring at her. "What are you waiting for?" Ruby shouted at them, "Kill them!"

To follow her own instructions, Ruby pointed Crescent Rose behind her, fired, and activated her semblance at the same time. She flew forward, crossing the distance between her and the Beowolfs in an eye blink. Crescent Rose spun diagonally left to right and was aided with a shot to cut the Beowolf in half. She reversed direction to deflect a claw swipe before darting in and swinging her sweetheart again. _Finally, something that makes sense right now!_ Ruby though. The feel of battle once again filling her veins as she ducked, weaved, ran, and shot her way through the Grimm, never staying in the same spot for more than a second.

There were only a few more Grimm left and they weren't Beowolfs and were 'C' class instead. A Boarbatusk started its spin attack and Ruby waited until it was almost on her before sidestepping and bringing Crescent Rose up at an angle and pulling like a lever. The Boarbatusk went up into the air and stopped spinning, squealing at the sudden loss of ground under it. Ruby jumped and shot behind her to get the distance in the air, then swiped her blade through the soft underbelly of the Grimm.

Both she and the Grimm started falling down to the ground as her momentum ran out. Ruby looked around and saw that a Beowolf was about to attack… Cardin, of all people, who had just killed a couple Creeps with a swing of his mace. As much as she disliked the guy, he was still a fellow hunter and couldn't very well let him get impaled in the back. Ruby angled herself so that Crescent Rose would be right next to the Beowolf's neck, then fired when she was in position. The shot rang out and she was flung in the opposite direction, but it worked as the Beowolf fell dead, with its head next to it.

Ruby surveyed the area and saw that the Grimm had been taken care of. She looked back to Cardin, whose armor was black, strangely, and went over to him. "Good job," she said.

Cardin turned and looked down. His eyes were confused for a moment before they widened. "O-oh, uhh, Rose! I'm sorry! I couldn't keep your Grimm in your pen. Forgive me!" He sounded fearful. A stark contrast to his usual bragging, boisterous self.

"Why are you sorry? I told you to kill them," Ruby said, confusion once again setting in.

"Rose! What the hell was that!?" Ruby winced as she turned and saw the rest of her team coming towards her. Yang looked angry and confused, which might have been a positive in this case.

Ruby shrugged. "I took care of the Grimm," she said casually.

"You spent _years_ capturing them, and now you've wasted all that! All of them are dead now!"

As if to prove her wrong though, a giant 'caww' came through the pit and they all turned to see that a Nevermore was about to break free of the chains holding it down to the ground. One had already been shattered by Ruby's last shot, and as they watched the last chain on its other foot broke.

With a triumphant cry, the Nevermore flew upwards in the air. It stopped and looked down at the collection of people, and Ruby could see its red eyes narrow.

_This day keeps getting better and better, _Ruby groaned in her head.

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**Well, things aren't going very well for Ruby at this moment. Of course, it wouldn't be a story then, just fluff. **

**In the first draft of this chapter, I originally wanted to have Ruby and Yang fight, but as my ideas for this story got more fleshed out, another opportunity presented itself in the form of the Grimm Pit. Don't worry, you'll have that sisterly fight later on eventually.**

**How's my battle scene? I tried to make it different than the Red Trailer, but there are still elements of it in there. **

**More to come! Don't forget to R.R.F.F!**

**-OrangeGalen**


	3. Supreme Commander Ozpin

**Hey everybody! Thank you for all of your reviews. Honestly, this story got a lot of attention fast. Not sure how to take it... Just more motivation for me to continue!**

**By the way, did anybody see the season finale of Once Upon a Time? Where everything becomes flipped? Just realized how this story is sorta' like that. I stake a claim that I got this out first though, so there. Ha.**

**Yea, don't have much else to say, so here's the chapter!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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**Edit: 11/12/15. Small Changes and touch up. **

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The Nevermore 'cawed' again and sent a rain of razor tipped feathers at the gathered Hunters/Huntresses, just like darts only a lot more deadly.

"Scatter!" Ruby shouted and semblanced out of the way of the feathers, making sure that her cloak didn't get stuck again. One: she almost died from the Death Stalker after she got pinned and two: the hole in the cloak was annoying to patch up. _Don't want to repeat that experience again_.

Weiss used some glyphs to deflect some of the feathers that were heading towards her. Blake used her shadow clones to dodge the feathers, letting them take the hits. Yang took a different approach, literally punching feathers that got too close to her out of the way, her hair glowing. The rest of the people got out of the way as well, except for one fellow that had his leg pierced. As Ruby turned around, she saw another feather go straight into his chest, crushing the armor he had and coming out his back. A crimson stain started spreading across his chest.

Ruby blinked. The stain spread until drops were hitting the ground, then streams of red. _No. No. Use your Aura. Heal yourself. Don't die._ But her silent pleads went unanswered as the hunter in training coughed a few times, blood coming out of his mouth, then slumped, loosing all tension in his body, his eyes glazed over.

The Nevermore cawed, breaking Ruby out of her stupor. The Grimm stopped its assault for a moment and started circling around the pit, readying for another round. Ruby forced her mind to act rationally by reviewing what she knew about the avian Grimm. _Nevermores are a class 'A' Grimm, sometimes bordering on 'S' class. Their feathers are extremely resilient to most times of firepower, and when they shoot their feathers they can regrow them at the same speed, so it's like a machine gun with never ending bullets. But it still needs to fly…_

Getting an idea, Ruby sped over to Weiss, "Weiss, Ice Flower!" She said, getting ready for the move by planting Crescent Rose into the ground and taking aim.

Weiss however just looked blankly at her, "What?"

"Ice-…" Ruby stopped because she just realized that Weiss really didn't know what she was talking about. _Considering how the rest of the day has gone, I guess I need to spell it out to her again. Quickly though._ "Create a set of glyphs with Ice Dust in front of Crescent Rose to freeze my bullets as they go through. Should slow down the Nevermore." She said briefly, hoping Weiss understood what she was planning.

Ruby could see the wheels turning in Weiss' head before it clicked and Weiss started moving again. She spun her hand and the series of glyphs for the move appeared, albeit slightly different, as there was no size degradation. _Oh well, it's good enough, _Ruby thought. She took aim at the approaching Nevermore and fired several shots.

As the shots traveled through the Dust glyphs, they absorbed some of the Ice Dust. So when they impacted, the Dust infused rounds activated and spread quite suddenly. Ruby had aimed for the wing joints to prevent it from flying accurately. Even though it was a moving target, Ruby knew her weapon's capabilities.

They would hit.

One, two, three, four shots hit, two per wing. The ice spread across the joints and the Nevermore gave a squawk of dismay as it suddenly couldn't lift its wings easily anymore. Another unnoticed bonus was that the ice made spikes so that when the wings moved in any moderate way, the spikes would jab into the body, causing the Grimm even more unpleasantness.

The Nevermore, already on a decent dive, couldn't pull up and crashed into the ground, causing everybody to hit the dirt in a dodge. Unfortunately, its crash landing had opened up some of the Grimm pins, allowing the collected Grimm inside to roam free.

Not that they did, strangely. They just stood in their spots, and took cover when the Nevermore came past. A few were crushed in the landing, but Ruby wouldn't shed any tears over it. However she had to resist slicing the head off of an Ursa that was in front of her after she semblanced out of the way. She looked up, and it looked down, but didn't react in any other way. _Why aren't they attacking us?_ Ruby wondered as she took a quick look around. She looked back at the Ursa and noticed something.

Its eyes were black.

Normal Grimm are generically identified by three main things (four if you count their hatred for humans): their black skin, their white bony plates with red markings on them, and their glowing red eyes.

This one's were glowing black.

Ruby had to shove that thought out of the way and focus on the one Grimm that was actively causing trouble. She looked over and saw her team was on their feet. "Blake! Tie it down!" Ruby yelled.

Blake nodded and ran towards the Nevermore, which was trying to right itself on the ground without the use of its wings. She took out Gambol Shroud and flung it, holding onto it by the long ribbon attached to it. It crossed over the top of the Nevermore's neck and Blake fired the gun portion when it rotated and pointed the right way, sending the gun and the ribbon swinging underneath the neck. Blake caught the gun and stuck the sword into the ground, holding it while the Nevermore started struggling.

"Yang, punch it!"

"DO. NOT. CALL. ME. YANG. ROSE!" A mass of flaming yellow jumped up with a dual bang from Ember Celica and came down on the Nevermore's head with an even louder bang from the impact. The Grimm was driven back into the dirt with a crash, creating a decently sized impact crater, obviously disoriented. Impressively, there was now a crack running along the Grimm's headplate from the brute force that was Yang Xiao Long. Yang bounded back, on guard but waiting.

"Weiss, immobilize it!" Ruby called out as she chambered another round in Crescent Rose and got ready to charge. Weiss twirled her hand and formed six miniature glyphs, which then shot out to impact the Nevermore; two on each wing, one around the main body, and the final one below Blake's ribbon. They expanded to encircle the body parts of the Grimm and locked it in place, preventing it from moving.

However, just like all Semblances, it takes energy to use. And with a large Grimm like a Nevermore, Weiss wouldn't be able to hold it for long. _I have to be fast, _Ruby thought, but then smirked. _Fast, I can do._ Once all the glyphs were in place, Ruby fired and ran forward, leaving behind a trail of rose petals. The world seemed to slow down around her and each step she took brought her closer to the Nevermore than a normal step would. Ruby loaded another round and just as she was passing underneath the Grimm, she fired downward.

Still with the same speed, she rocketed upwards, hooking Crescent Rose under the neck of the Nevermore, and pulled. She fired again, and again, and again, and again, and once more, each time she felt a little more of the Grimm's neck give as the blade of her sweetheart cut further in. On the last shot she felt the breaking (or more like slicing) point and met no resistance. The blade cut straight through the neck and sent the head spinning and flying away. Ruby braced herself as she flew up a bit, then back down to the ground, letting her Aura absorb some of the shock, while her leg position took care of the rest, something she learned from her Uncle Qrow.

She looked back and saw the two pieces of the Grimm crumple to the ground and smiled to herself. _Just like initiation, except without the giant cliff to run up. _She took a deep breath and let it go, then made to put away Crescent Rose…

_"Miss Rose!"_

That voice, when it was in that commanding tone, could instill fear even in Grimm, let alone students. Ruby froze and slowly turned around to face what was probably her impending doom that went by the name of Glynda Goodwitch. She was also slightly different as her cape was completely dark purple it was almost black, and her normally white shirt was now dark grey. It made her even more intimidating.

"What on Remnant happened here?" Glynda demanded as she strode closer to the red-cloaked girl.

Ruby could feel sweat forming all over her. "I-uh, well…"

"You have caused a serious amount of trouble young lady and I believe that I specifically told you to control your Grimm, not slaughter them." Glynda was now towering over the cringing form of Ruby.

"I-I-I d-did what I had to," Ruby answered, her voice squeaking it out in more of a question.

Glynda sneered at her, "We'll _discuss_ your failure later." She turned around and faced the rest of the pit. She reached to her hip and took out… _a whip? Since when did she have a whip? Isn't her weapon a riding crop?... Not that it's much better than a whip but still. _

Glynda uncoiled her whip and spun it twice around her head then cracked it in the air. The destroyed fences and gouged out ground suddenly floated and spun in the air before sinking back in the ground where they had come from. Pieces of metal reshaped themselves and fit back into their proper places. The ground smoothed out and refilled, making it so that the Pit looked like it had before, excluding the decaying corpses of the various Grimm. _Never gets old watching that,_ Ruby thought to herself, remembering the food fight and the clean up of the Breach.

"Team RWBY, you will come with me to discuss this event. The rest of you," Glynda directed at the other hunters/huntresses, "put the Grimm back in their correct pens." They scurried around to fulfill the Professor's command.

Weiss, Blake, and Yang had all gathered around, the three of them giving Ruby suspicious looks but not daring to say anything in front of Goodwitch. Just then, Glynda's scroll went off. She picked it up and looked at the caller I.D. Her eyes widened in surprise before she answered, "Yes Commander?" Ruby noticed the rest of her team stiffen at that. Pause. "That is correct." Another pause. "I assume you saw the whole thing?" She said dryly. Pause. "I'll bring them up." She hung up.

"Change of venue ladies. The Supreme Commander wants to see you all." If possible WBY stiffened even more. Ruby however was just confused. Again. _Supreme Commander? Isn't that Ironwood? No, wait; he's just a general. Is it someone higher up on the totem pole? Someone the council put in without anybody knowing? I know they moved Ozpin out of security for the Vytal Festival, so maybe this is just someone they put in. _

Glynda started marching them back to Beacon, once again attracting many stares. Ruby looked over and saw those two transfer students from Vacu- no Haven, Emerald and Mercury. They didn't look any different, which was somewhat relieving. Ruby had never had a long conversation with them (excluding when she was examining their weapons [see: dissecting with her eyes]) and only a few short chats, but she could get the dynamics between the two. They were nice people, Emerald was slightly childish (this coming from Ruby) but was mature enough, and Mercury was laid-back and sarcastic, sort of like how she thought Ren would be if he talked more and had a little more personality, no offence.

She gave those two a small smile and a hand wave as she passed and was once again confused when _they_ looked confused as well. She looked away and sighed. Why does it seem that everybody looks at me with fear, hatred, or confusion now?

They moved on and went to the elevator doors. Glynda pressed the top floor button and they all went inside and up.

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"Did'ja see that?"

"Of course I did, why would she smile at us if she wasn't about to eviscerate us?" Emerald said to her grey haired partner.

"That wasn't the Rose we met before." Mercury commented.

"She looked the same," Emerald started, but then thought about it. _She did look a little nicer…_

"Not exactly. Her cloak was red and her leggings were black. Plus I couldn't read her semblance anymore."

Emerald was surprised. Mercury's own semblance was the ability to identify other people's semblances and think of a way around them (usually), but only when they were used against him. That's why he often sparred with others and then quickly surrendered, just so he could get that valuable information. Once he got it, he could know a person's semblance by looking at them.

_So if he couldn't read Rose's anymore… _"Then that means-"

"She's not Ruby Rose."

"What does this mean for our mission?" Emerald asked, wanting to verify her own suspicions.

"We wait. We figure out who she is first and where the real Rose is. If it turns out that she _is_ the real Rose…" He shrugged.

Emerald smirked, "You do realize that it's my turn this time. You got Tukson last."

"Only because you ran away."

"I did not 'run away!' I ducked." Emerald protested.

"Uh-huh. Sure." Mercury chuckled.

"Seriously, that money's still available and could be yours."

"Nah. Where's the fun in that?"

"Goddammit."

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Ruby was trying her bestest not to twitch and jump around, letting her nervousness show. It started when she woke up and found Yang swearing and threatening her, and escalated from there. Everything seemed different and _wrong_, but also familiar. And it was wearing at Ruby. It just seemed so wrong, as if it was deliberately antagonizing her and making her paranoid.

She realized that they were headed up to the Headmaster's office and wondered about that. Is this commander guy person in Ozpin's office right now? Why would he meet us there, rather than his own office?

The elevator 'dinged' and the five stepped out with Glynda taking the lead. She crossed the anteroom and knocked on the door before it slid open. Ruby hesitated a moment before she followed her team in.

It was exactly how Ozpin's office looked before, except there were now podiums displaying various weapons and items on them placed on the perimeter next to the walls. The inner mechanisms of the clock were still in full display above and below them, ticking loudly away. It was getting towards the end of the day, judging by the shadows and the position of the sun through the glass, creating interesting patterns on the floor.

Speaking of the floor, once everyone was inside, Glynda and WBY all kneeled to the floor, leaving Ruby awkwardly standing. _What? Why is everybody-?_ She got distracted as Yang backhanded her leg and forced her to kneel as well. Ruby turned to Yang, who still had red eyes.

"Do you have a death wish?" Yang hissed.

"What? I don't understand-"

"Just. Quiet!" Yang bowed her head, along with Blake and Weiss. Ruby just looked back and forth at them.

Glynda stood up. "Team RWBY as you requested Commander."

Ruby looked up to see who the commander was, but Yang grabbed her hair and forced her head down so she was looking at the floor. _Yang, I swear, once things have calmed down-_

Once again, her thoughts were interrupted when there was a sound of a chair being turned around and a clink of a mug being set down. "Thank you Glynda, please stay until this is over." Ruby's eyes widened. _I know that voice! That's Ozpin's voice… Wait,_ he's _the commander? I thought he was just the Headmaster?_

"Please, rise." At that, Yang's hand on her head let go and RWBY stood up, with Ruby rubbing the back of her head. Yang was none too gentle.

Ruby looked up and saw Ozpin sitting at his desk, a mug on his left and a scroll in his right, playing a clip of something. Ruby had a suspicion it was what just happened in that Grimm pit, since he managed to get a recording of her fighting Torchwick immediately after it happened. _How did he get those camera angles anyway? _

After several moments of Ozpin looking at the video he placed the scroll on his desk and looked up. There wasn't anything overtly different about him, just that the greens were just a tad darker, but that might have just been the light playing tricks. "Well?" It was such a simple question, said with just the barest hint of curiosity. It was more of an opening for a discussion than an actual question needing answering.

"Any one of you care to explain why you found it prudent to start killing the Grimm rather than simply recapture them?" Ozpin continued.

In a rare moment, Blake was the first one to speak. "Rose decided that it would be better if we killed the Grimm rather than recapture them. We followed her orders during the situation."

"I see," Ozpin said. "Well then Miss Rose, care to explain your reasoning?"

Ruby stepped forward slightly nervous. "I saw wild Grimm that needed to be killed. We're hunters, right? We kill Grimm. I don't know why we even have all those Grimm in the first place." Ruby said, her confusion coming out.

"Don't know why we have Grimm?" Yang said incredulously. "What happened to you when that crystal activated?"

"Crystal?" Glynda pounced on that slip.

Weiss spoke next, "I created a new type of Dust crystal, a Red-Black crystal to be precise, and M- Rose used some white Dust grain and activated it."

"You know how dangerous new Dust combinations can be Miss Schnee. You should know better." Weiss hung her head. "Moving on, what were the effects?"

"Unknown," Weiss said in a professional manner, "however we have noticed some differences in Rose, such as clothing and weapon changes, as well as a massive personality change."

"Weiss, nothing is different about me. I would have to say that you are all the ones that have changed." Ruby said.

"Well for your information you little-" Yang started.

"Miss Xiao Long," Ozpin's voice cut through anything she was about to say. "I have a theory, so please be silent and let your sister talk," he said, his smile appearing to be appeasing, but having a somewhat mocking vibe to it.

Ruby could hear Yang mutter, _"she's not my sister…"_ under her breath. It hurt more than she ever thought it would.

"Now then, Miss Rose, I have a couple of questions. Your weapon, first off. I noticed that you've changed the functions on it and the blade. When were those made?"

"I haven't made any changes to Crescent Rose in ages," Ruby said truthfully.

Ozpin's eyebrow lifted a minuscule amount. "Indeed? And your cloak, when did you color it red?"

"I haven't colored it! It's always been like this ever since I got it from mom. Well, excluding the repairs I've made over the years," Ruby added on to her curious statement.

Ozpin's eyes narrowed, "And who is your mother?" He questioned.

_That's an odd question. _"You should know that Headmaster."

"Don't speak to the Commander like that!" Glynda said, her hand reaching for her whip before Ozpin raised his hand to stop her.

"Indulge me, if you would." Ozpin said, waiting.

It felt as if this is the make or break moment, where everything depended on this answer. "Summer. Summer Rose." Ruby said, hidden emotion in her voice.

Ozpin looked at her, as if he had x-ray vision, not X-Ray as in Jaune's comic book character, as she could feel his gaze going through her. He nodded and then said, "Glynda, Miss Schnee, Belladonna, Xiao Long, please take this impostor to the interrogation facility. This is obviously not Ruby Rose."

_What?_ "What?" Ruby said, shocked. "But I am Ruby!"

"No, you are not. Your cape and weapon changes are not something that you've had before and are too sudden to have. Also since those Grimm became free of control, in means that either one of two things happened: either Miss Rose voluntarily released them, which is highly unlikely since she's spent years gathering them, or she's dead. Until we can discover where your allegiances lie and what happened to Miss Rose, you will be under our… through care. Glynda if you would," he gestured and turned away.

Ruby was too shocked to react until she felt something snap against her neck painfully and tug, causing her to stumble backwards. Glynda's whip had closed about her neck and she was leading her out of the room. "Come on, impostor, let's find out how you tick."

Weiss looked somewhat confused, but also determined. Blake was impassive but watching on with interest. Yang was… terrifying as her red eyes seemed to glow with delight. "I've been waiting for this moment," she said lovingly to herself.

They exited the Supreme Commander's office in various states. The door closed behind them. Ozpin picked up his mug and took a sip of his Earl Grey tea before starting the playback on his scroll again, watching the fake Ruby's style and decisions. "Very interesting…"

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**What do you think? Ruby's in for a hard time since she's been found out(?). Yeah you all know that she's in an alternate world, but they don't know! **

**Oh, by the way, the next chapter will be the one to bump up the rating, to keep watch for that...**

**More to come! Don't forget to R.R.F.F.**

**-OrangeGalen**


	4. Interrogation

**Hello hello, I'm back again! Finals were a thing, but I'm home free!**

**So this is the chapter that will make this story an 'M'. Just a warning. And it's only going to get better. Or worse. Depends on your point of view. **

**Whatever, on with the chapter!**

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**Edit: 11/12/15. Small changes and touch up.**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. **

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Things had gone from mildly confusing, to _very_ confusing, to downright painful for Ruby Rose. The whip Glynda had wrapped around her neck hadn't loosened at all and was slowly cutting off her air supply. Not enough for her to black out from lack of oxygen, just to make breathing difficult and for her to work to get a full breath of air. Somewhere along the line Blake had taken Crescent Rose from her and had wrapped the ribbon of Gambol Shroud around her hands, making makeshift handcuffs. She was making mocking sneers at Ruby as she shoved her every once in a while. Weiss had gone completely cold and silent, but the sheer hate and in her eyes made up for any lack of other emotions on her face. The epitome of her 'Ice Queen' persona, along with other less than flattering names for it that Ruby inadvertently heard. Bitch Queen was one of them. She was currently holding Ruby's scroll that she pilfered off her body, along with the extra clips she had for her sweetheart.

Yang however was making no effort to hide her enthusiasm, smiling and chuckling to herself, bouncing along, her eyes practically _glowing_ red. That smile she had was the one where someone was going to get hurt and she would _enjoy_ it. Not the 'thrill of the fight' smile, nor the playing around, joking smile. This was the one where she wanted to bodily damage somebody and leave them lying on the ground crying and relish in their pain.

Yang came closer to Ruby with that creepy smile on her face. "I have waited so long for this moment," she breathed, "you have no idea. You may not be Rose, but you're the next best thing. I've waited for you to fuck up this badly so I can do whatever I want with you. Now I'm going to have some _fun_…"

"Now now, Miss Xiao Long," Goodwitch said placidly, "we do need to find out what happened to Miss Rose and what this imposter is here for. The best way to get that information is if she's _alive_ and _conscious_," she emphasized.

"But of course," Yang said nonchalantly. "It's after that when the fun begins."

"You and everybody else," Blake said.

"Hey, I get first dibs, calling it now. Anyone wants to argue with that can get a face full of Burning Celica," she said, patting the gauntlets on her wrists, "like Jo-Annis did when he got in the way of investigating that White Fang fucker."

_You know, I'm not even surprised at this moment that Yang renamed her gauntlets, _Ruby thought.

"His name was pronounced _Jones_, Xiao Long," Blake said, "and yes I do remember. As I recall, Joanes is still in the morgue as his parents never picked him up. Something about not wanting to be within a mile of their son's murderer?"

"He had it commin'. Should have known better." Yang said dismissively.

The rising panic that Ruby was feeling was now not just about the upcoming interrogation, which sounded more and more like torture. _Yang's _killed_ before? How? When? She couldn't have, she's never killed someone before. She would have been destroyed if she had. Something is not right here,_ Ruby decided. _Well, I knew_ that _about five minutes after that Dust incident. But how could the Dust cause _everything _to change? Goodwitch has a whip, not a riding crop, Ember Celica is named differently, everyone's dressed different, and apparently I'm supposed to be different too. _

_I have the bad feeling this is not going to be like Ozpin's interview with the bright light and him offering cookies. Well, maybe the bright light will stay the same… Okay Ruby, think about cookies then. Get your mind off things. They're yummy, especially warm, gooey ones where the chocolate melts in your mouth, like going to sleep. And made with that secret ingredient Mom used to…_ She trailed off in her own thoughts. _Don't think about Mom right now. That's not the right time. I'm sleepy right now…_

She felt a painful stinging on the side of her face and she stumbled. She shot open her eyes, not remembering when they closed. "Don't go to sleep now bitch, you've got to give some info for us," Yang said after slapping her again.

"Perhaps she should get some air, unless you plan on dragging her the rest of the way." Blake suggested timidly.

"No time like the present," Glynda responded and tugged the whip again to get them moving, causing Ruby to cough and spots to swim in her eyes. She looked around and saw that there were a few people staring at their little group and muttering amongst themselves, as she was practically drug along, Goodwitch keeping a close grip on her whip around her neck.

From the little that Ruby could see, people they had passed not too long ago had stopped to stare at them, including Mercury and Emerald, who were now looking on with extreme confusion. However, the people there started to get some idea of what was going on (which was better than Ruby's at any rate) and started getting wolfish grins on their faces. Ruby was not encouraged the slightest. _I've seen pleasanter expressions on Grimm. _

Ruby felt a heeled foot planted on her back and she met the floor in a painful heap, unable to break her fall as her hands were literally tied behind her back. "Move," Weiss said, the first word she spoke since leaving the headmaster's office.

Ruby tried, her eyes watering, but Glynda kept walking, pulling on the whip. Ruby tried to get on her knees, but the whip pulled taunt and Ruby saw black spots dance in front of her vision. She fell and was drug a few more yards before Glynda stopped. "Ruby Rose, or whoever you are, please refrain from dirtying up the school with your filthy body. Either stand up or become a permanent fixture on the floor so everyone could wipe their shoes on you. Come on Miss Rose, I haven't got all day." Ruby struggled and eventually stood up again, but swayed as she could feel her head getting light. _Oh Oum, what's going on_, Ruby thought, everything becoming a bit too much for her. Unwillingly, tears started forming at the corner of her eyes and leaking down her face.

Eventually after going down several unfamiliar corridors in the school and falling once more, Ruby stopped when Glynda reached an heavily armored door and entered a code on the pad next to it before opening it. Ruby could feel the ribbon being unwrapped around her hands. With a jerk, Ruby was thrown inside and the leather uncoiled around her neck. Ruby wolfed in fresh air down her unconstructed airways. _Air, I love you and never want you to go away. Please stay with me forever. _

Ruby's calm didn't last long as she felt someone grab the back of her shirt and carry her into a chair. Well, threw her into a chair really. The chair was bolted down to the floor so it made a clanging sound as her back hit it, causing her to hiss in pain even though her Aura took the hit. A secondary series of clicks found her hands cuffed to the chair, constricting her hands. Ruby's eyes were wide. _I'm not a criminal! What did I do?! I don't know what's going on! _

"Thank you Miss Xiao Long, that will be all for the moment," Goodwitch said, "If you would wait outside with the rest of your team, that would be welcome.

"Sure," Yang said and WBY headed out of the room, shutting the door behind them. Ruby looked around but couldn't see much as there was only the solitary light hanging above the table, the rest of the room darkened. Ruby tried getting her breathing under control.

Glynda took a seat in a chair across from her and stared at Ruby. "Now then, we're all alone. Let's start from the beginning from where we left off in the Commander's office. This all started with a Dust accident. Can you describe what happened in detail?"

Ruby nodded. _Okay, everything's fine for the moment. I can answer these questions. Once they figure out what the Dust did, then they can reverse the effects of it. _"_Alright_," she rasped, then coughed, "Alright. Since the breach Weiss had been working in the Dust shop on something and today she called us down. She gave us all some Dust for our own usage but she gave me a red-black crystal, after creating several black crystals. That was impressive since nobody has made a black crystal before, but then she goes and combines it with a red crystal? That's Weiss for ya." Ruby blinked and coughed again. _Stay on topic Ruby. _

"Anyway, I tried activating the crystal with my Aura, but nothing happened. I tried again, but still nothing. Weiss then suggested using White Dust grain to help activate it. I kept pumping in more Aura but it still wouldn't activate so I was about to stop when Weiss startled me and I put a burst of Aura into the red-black crystal and I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I woke up to Yang slapping me and everyone acting like they woke up after getting three hours of sleep." _Yeah, that was a bad day after midterms. _

"White Dust you say?" Glynda questioned and made a note on her scroll. "Moving on, you said that your team was acting strangely. Elaborate."

_Oh, boy, how do I go about this nicely? _"Well, they were all dressed differently than normal. Blake didn't have her ribbon on over her kitty Faunus ears, Weiss' skirt was longer, and Yang had even less on than normal. And they were all… well, they seemed to have different personalities." When she saw Glynda motion to elaborate Ruby continued. "They were more… savage you could say, and cussing every other sentence and fighting amongst each other… more so than normal," Ruby added.

Glynda made another note. "Alright. Now, moving on to the events in the Grimm Pit-"

"Umm, I have a question about that?" Ruby asked. When Glynda gave her a look Ruby hastily moved on. "Why do we have all those Grimm?"

Glynda stared at Ruby for a moment. "You mentioned something about that in the Commander's office. What is so confusing about what we do?"

"What we do? What we do is hunt Grimm, not keep them in pens. Well, except for Professor Port, but that's only for a little while."

Glynda stared at Ruby again then made yet another note. "Miss Rose, or whoever you are," _I am Ruby Rose!_ "if you have any remote knowledge of our history, you would know what the Hunter's mandate is, which includes the usage of Grimm when necessary."

Ruby's eyes widened. _We _use_ Grimm?! They're the creatures of darkness for Dust sakes! We're supposed to_ hunt _them, not use them._

"I can see that that information is surprising to you," Glynda said. "I'll move past that for now." Glynda pulled out Ruby's scroll that she had gotten from Weiss and started looking through it. "I can see why my message didn't reach your scroll, all your numbers are incorrect and yours is different too. Care to explain?"

"I've never changed my number before, and all those numbers are correct," Ruby answered truthfully.

Glynda gave her a skeptical look and made a call. Ruby could hear the phone ringing then a disconnect tone. "Exactly what happened when I called you previously. No such number exists."

_Well that's strange, _Ruby thought, _but not surprising how this day has gone._ Glynda put away Ruby's scroll. "Anyway, the Grimm Pit. What exactly happened down there? Why didn't you use any Black Crystals to recapture the Grimm?"

"Black crystals don't exist, except for the few Weiss made," Ruby said. Glynda rewarded her with another stare.

"Fine then. Your weapon, Bloody Rose: when did you make those changes?"

Ruby frowned. _Is she deliberately trying me?_ "First off, it's _Crescent_ Rose, and I've never made any major changes since I've built my sweetheart, as I've said before."

Glynda gave her the most intense stare Ruby's ever seen and she could feel herself wilting under her gaze. _I've never liked that stare._

"Alright then. Let's get this underway." _Get what underway?_ "What is your name?"

"Wha? What's this all abou-"

"Answer the question!" Glynda shouted, snapping her whip for emphasis.

"Eep! Ruby Rose!" Ruby said, trying to get away from the whip. _How did she pull that out so fast?_

"Date of birth?"

"Um, June 26th, 1274, New Vytal calendar."

"Biological mother?"

Ruby sighed. "Summer Rose."

"Adoptive mother?"

At that Ruby's head shot up. "What? I've never had an adoptive mother. I've been living with Taiyang Xiao Long and Uncle Qrow."

Glynda gave her a stare and made another note or three. "Rose, or whoever you are, you are either the best or worse spy I've ever met."

_What? Spy? For whom? The White Fang? _"What? I'm not a spy!" Ruby shouted.

"And the sad thing is that you believe that," Glynda said. Glynda made another note and stood up. "I'll move out and correlate your tale with the rest of your team, but I doubt that they'll have the same story. For now, sit tight. In a little while we'll see what makes you tick." She opened the door and went out, closing the door behind her.

Then the light went out, leaving Ruby behind in the pitch-black darkness, strapped to the cold metal chair.

* * *

"Well?" Weiss demanded, "What's the verdict? We heard everything already, and that is not exactly what happened."

"Then please, enlighten me Miss Schnee and the divergences," Glynda drawled.

"Well, first off, I called down Mistress who brought these two along," Weiss said, jerking her thumb and Xiao Long and Belladonna, "to have her test out the red-black crystal. When nothing happened, she took it upon herself to use the White Dust grain on the crystal. I was nowhere near her when she carelessly pumped her Aura into the crystal, which she set off. There was a bright flash and Mistress, or whoever that is in there, was lying on the ground. Yang slapped her to wake up and you can tell the differences."

"Her cloak is back to when she got it from that whore Summer," Yang spat, "and she believes that she's her mother. Something's wrong with her."

"No shit dumbass." Weiss muttered.

"Aww, you do care," Blake teased.

"Fuck off pussy, you know as well as I do how valuable she is, as much as I hate to admit it. If she's damaged in any way-"

"It would be by her own doing this time," Glynda said, looking up from her screen. "I have the security footage and what you said was true. Miss Rose was the one to use the White Dust grain and not you as she claims," she said to Weiss.

"So what now?" Yang asked.

"Ah, the big question." Glynda adjusted her glasses and looked at her scroll for the notes she made. "First and foremost the facts: that red-black crystal with the white Dust caused several changes in whomever that person is who believes herself to be Ruby Rose. Miss Rose's Grimm lost control and reverted back to wild Grimm around the time the crystal activated. Both parties believe the other to have changed.

"Now I have several theories from there. Most likely is that she is an impostor of Ruby Rose and a spy. However, her information in highly inaccurate, which makes me wonder about the rebel's information gathering techniques. We'll have to check back with the lab for the blood tests later to be sure though. Next is that the red-black crystal, mixed with white Dust grain, causes a breakage of the Hunter-Grimm slave bondage, hence why Rose's Grimm reverted. In that case, we need to keep that knowledge secret to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. The last theory is that the crystal causes amnesia or alters a persons perception on reality."

"What do you mean by that?" Yang asked, leaning against the wall.

"I'll put this in terms so you can understand," Goodwitch said patronizingly. "Your brain is receiving signals from your senses; sight, smell, touch, taste, hearing, Aura. But instead of understanding those signals normally, your brain gets something different from them. For the person in there, she sees and hears everything differently. But until we have proof from the blood test, these are only theories, nothing more."

"Some things aren't adding up though," Blake said. "Those theories are sound except when looking at everything overall. And parts of her story are inconsistent. How did her weapon change? Why was she wearing different clothes? How does she know certain things, but not others?"

"Once again, it could be because of some brain alteration."

"There's more to it than that," Blake stated, "unless everybody was effected by the crystal, and I'm not talking about the ones that were just in the room when it happened."

Glynda stared at her but nodded in confirmation. "Indeed, which is why we're still going ahead with the information gathering session."

"Don't know why we don't call it what it is," Yang grumbled.

"Public perception," Glynda countered. "And speaking of public, if you would, put a public sign-up notice saying that there will be an open session in cell 1138 starting tonight every night until further notice. The masses need their entertainment until the Tournament starts after all."

Yang's smile stayed on. "I get the first slot."

"Well then, why don't you head on in then? Get reacquainted with your sister."

"She's _not_ my sister." Yang growled.

"Half-sister then," Blake added with a smirk, knowing it would infuriate her.

Yang snarled and turned away, going into the interrogation room. Or as most people would call it, a torture chamber.

* * *

Ruby stared into the blackness, trying to see anything. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, trying to fight down the rising panic. _Calm down Ruby, you've been in situations worse than this before. Remember the White Fang getting you a few days ago. True they didn't lock you in a room and interrogate you, but same principle right? And they're your team. Once the Dust wears off, everything will go back to normal, none of this craziness. _

_Maybe it's me though,_ Ruby thought. _That crystal only knocked me out. So what if I'm stuck in a bad dream? Maybe that crystal_ was _a hallucinogen._ _Like that one Grimm that causes hallucinations. What was it called? Puff-something or other. Whatever. I just need to wait it out. That's all I have to do._

Ruby was drawn out of her ruminations when she heard the door open and close, letting in a sliver of light, but not enough to see who entered. Then the entire room lit up in a flash of light. She could almost feel her retina's burn from the sudden lights turning on painfully before she could close her eyes. She couldn't open her eyes when footsteps came closer and she could feel the cuffs on the chair open, which gave her hands some relief.

However, that was about as much relief she would get for hours.

A hand closed about her neck and Ruby felt herself get lifted off the chair. She gasped and grabbed at the hand around her neck, trying to pry it open. No luck, but a familiar feminine chuckle came from the perpetrator. Ruby cracked open an eye and saw a mass of yellow in front of her. _Yang_.

The girl in question lifted Ruby up by the neck and squeezed. Ruby started choking, and could feel consciousness slip away from her before Yang moved and slammed Ruby onto the white tiled floor. Ruby's head made a loud crack as it connected, but her Aura flared as it absorbed the blow, preventing any serious damage. It still hurt though.

Ruby coughed, trying to get air in her lungs and rolled over. Before she could though, a foot connected with her ribs and sent her rolling, causing her to cough even more.

Yang chuckled again. "You know, this is even more fun than I thought it would be." She planted a foot on Ruby's back, pinning her down, then administered another kick to Ruby's side. Ruby whined, trying to cradle her ribs. Yang reached down and pinned Ruby's arm to her back, preventing her from reaching her injured ribs. "Nuh-uh-uh, no comfort for you." Yang stepped off Ruby, but still held onto Ruby's arm and gave another kick to her ribs.

"I don't know who you are, but you are the closest thing to Rose that I can get right now. And over the next few days you're going to be seeing a lot of me, and your team." Yang dropped Ruby's arm, which immediately went to her injured side.

Ruby was trying to make sense of what was happening. _What's Yang doing? This isn't you._ She could hear some rustling and clanking of metal, and really didn't want to know what Yang was doing. After a moment, Yang stopped and came back over to Ruby. Ruby felt herself get picked up by her neck again, choking her once more, then Yang punched her in the gut and dropped her. Ruby wheezed and clutched her stomach, trying desperately not to vomit up her lunch and probably a bit of her breakfast.

"I don't know if you did your research fully, but we have an interrogation system, Team RWBY. It's actually quite ingenious really, even if Rose made it. I beat down the person till they don't have any Aura to spare. Then Blake comes in and pumps you full of drugs to spill all your secrets. Then Rose and Weiss team up together to cause pain. And that's not even for the open session. Imagine all the fun you're going to have later once we're done with you. Then tomorrow we start back up all over again!" Yang sounded positively gleeful at that prospect.

"Why?" Ruby wheezed out, now on her knees crouched.

"Why? Why what? You'll have to be more specific than that," Yang mocked before lashing out and catching Ruby in the chest with her foot again, sending the girl rocking backwards.

"Why are you doing this? This isn't you." Ruby whimpered from her curled up position on the floor.

Yang frowned. "Because I like doing this; it's fun! And this is perfectly me. If you had done any research into us like the good fucking spy you should be, you would know that." She went over and grabbed Ruby's neck again. However Ruby was ready and threw a punch…

That was completely ineffectual when Yang caught her fist with her open hand. "Rose, Rose Rose Rose, you should know better than to throw a punch at _me_ of all people," Yang chided, then squeezed on Ruby's caught hand. "But I love it when you're feisty. Makes it much more fun to break you."

Ruby flinched and then tried to cry out when Yang's superior strength almost crushed her comparatively tiny hand. Yang let go just before anything got broken or she blacked out though, but then punched Ruby in the jaw.

Ruby saw stars and couldn't tell up from down. Her head spun and throbbed painfully moving in cadence with her ribs, causing Ruby to close her eyes, tears trickling down her face from pain. She felt Yang grab her legs and swing her into the wall, her back smashing against the cold metal tiles again, driving the breath out of her. She slid to the floor, gasping for breath again, fighting her body for air. _Why?_ Yang flipped Ruby over and punched her in the face again, the double hits of the fist and the floor, causing Ruby to loose all feeling except for pain. _Why?_

In one last move, Yang brought up a foot and slammed it down on Ruby's chest. At first, Ruby's Aura protected her from the disabling blow, but from the previous blows and Yang's overwhelming undeniable strength, her Aura gave out, causing Yang's foot to cause a cracking sound when if fully connected.

Pain. That was all Ruby could focus on. Something broke in her and she could feel that her bones weren't the way they should be. Pain.

She screamed as much as she could, but it came out raspy and wet from vomit and bile that came up. Tears streamed down her face, unending. It hurt to breath. It hurt to cry. It hurt. Period.

"Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic," Yang said as she stepped around the bawling mess that was Ruby Rose. "I never knew exactly why they chose you. You're just too weak to lead anybody." Yang knelt down next to Ruby and smirked. "Now comes the humiliation."

She grabbed Ruby's boots and pulled them off, then turned Ruby over to get her cloak and unpinned it. Kicking her again for good measure, she started working the laces of her corset and skirt and pulled those off too, getting the stockings as well, leaving Ruby only in her bra and panties. Yang's smirk grew wider as she saw purple bruises forming on Ruby's pale skin. "I'll leave you displayed so everyone can see what you truly are: a pathetically weak, small and helpless child that should have never been born." Yang went over and grabbed a pair of scissors from a worktable and then proceeded to cut the remaining fabrics from Ruby, leaving her completely naked.

Yang tossed the clothes in a pile in a corner, then picked Ruby up, ignoring her pained gasps and crying, and carried her over to the wall. Manacles hung down from the ceiling and close to the floor, which Yang shackled Ruby up to so she hung from the ceiling, her feet barely scraping the floor. Ruby cried out in distress as her arms and legs were pulled slightly further than they were comfortable with, her chest protesting the stretch.

Ruby looked up through her pain and tears and saw her sister. Or rather, the monster that was in her sister's body. Those Grimm red eyes and the maniacal smile on her face that was more teeth than smile. The way her hands and feet worked to inflict pain on those who displeased her. For the first time since the crystal incident, Ruby could see clearly.

This wasn't her sister.

It never was.

With that revelation came another. That wasn't her team.

They looked like her team and sounded like them, but they were all monsters wearing their bodies. Their actions and movements were all those of killers. Not her teammates. Not her friends.

Everything changed and Ruby had a sinking feeling that it wasn't just the crystal's fault. The whole world had gone to madness.

_Smack!_ Ruby's face snapped to the side when Yang slapped her. Then she felt something rubbing against her nether regions, causing conflicting feelings of pain and growing pleasure. Ruby blinked through the tears and saw that Yang was rubbing the handle of a multi-strapped whip against her women's lips.

"N-no… stop." Ruby pleaded weakly, trying to reach the monster that wore her sister's skin's heart.

Yang indeed did stop, but grinned up at Ruby. "Oh don't worry, I'm not going to pop your little rose," she sneered, butchering the affectionate name Ruby's mother would say to her. She then caressed the straps across her nipples and Ruby had to bite down a groan at that motion. "I'll leave that for one of the others to do later, unless Weiss has already done so." Ruby's eyes widened in horror at those words, but then shut as she screamed in pain when Yang brought the whip to bear on her pale skin, leaving red streaks where the straps hit across her midriff.

"Just some reassurance, none of us will permanently damage you, well, physically anyway. There will be scars however, both mental and bodily. You may have trouble walking again… It's going to be fun breaking you." She brought the whip down again.

And again. And again. The whip came down continuously interspaced with the occasional punch or kick. Then the whip again. Both her front and her back were unspared from the whips menstruations.

Each action was punctuated with a cry of pain from the girl with red highlights that hung from the ceiling. Each blow was made by a monster wearing her half-sister's skin. All rational thought left the girl in chains as she was whipped, beaten, and insulted with impunity. All concept of time disappeared except for the brief moment in-between lesser constant pain, and the sudden instant pain.

The worst part was, for Ruby Rose, that this was only the beginning of hell for her.

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**Well, what did you think? As previously said, this is only the beginning of hell, we still have to end Yang's fun and get through Blake and Weiss' turns, plus the open session. Ouch. Keep the pain rolling!  
Sometimes I wonder if I'm secretly a sadist... 0_0**

**Anyway, kiddos to those that caught the various references. **

**I debated for a moment whether or not if Ruby called Goodwitch she would pick up from the other world, but decided against it. Cell reception isn't ****_that_**** strong.**

**On a literary note, it's hard for a writer to keep track of everything they write, so if you see some ****inconsistencies and/or spelling/grammar errors, please point it out to me. **

**Okay that's enough. Don't forget to R.R.F.F.**

**More to come! (Probably within a few days)**

**-OrangeGalen**


	5. Torture

**Hello again. Got mixed reviews on the last chapter, but I wasn't surprised. Some of this stuff is hard to tone down, and yes, I did tone down what I wanted to put from my slightly sadist mind. **

**Anyway, I split the last chapter and this one, because it would have been too long and I don't want chapters going over 5,000 words. Doesn't mean it won't happen, I'd just prefer to avoid it. **

**Also this chapter is a little later than I wanted it. First, it wasn't complete. Second, and most importantly, it was Memorial Day, and I realized this chapter isn't suitable for that day. However I did post a one-shot Memorial Day RWBY story called _Bring Me to the Place You Rest_. Please read it, but be warned of the feels. **

**Okay, this chapter gets more into Ruby's torture, so that should be a warning for you squeamish people out there.**

** _This story is rated 'M' for a reason._ **

**Other than that, please don't hate me too much. **

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY**

* * *

**Edit: 11/12/15. Small changes and touch up.**

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

_Whack! _Pain.

_Whack! _Pain.

_Whack!_ Pain.

_Punch!_ Pain.

_Kick!_ Pain.

_Whack!_ Pain.

That was the constant rhythm coming from cell 1138, besides the cries of pain that came after each sound, the constant moans, and the occasional cackle and taunt. One person was the one causing the sudden sounds, grinning madly, her eyes red with delight and her yellow hair swinging around glowing slightly as she went about her artwork of torture, painting her selected canvas of skin.

The other was chained to the ceiling and the floor, arms and legs stretched beyond what one would find comfortable. Her back, chest, legs, and face were all red and bleeding slightly from the near hour worth of torture. Her cries of pain and tears were only music to the blonde Grimm and encouraged her to continue.

Ruby had lost all concept of time and her world had shrunk down to constant throbbing pain. Never in all her life had she felt such pain. Not fighting Grimm in the wild. Not combat practice against other students. Only the emotional pain of losing her mother could compare to what this was like right now, and that was only a dull background pain.

But the blonde torturer was digging that particular pain out to add onto her current agony.

"You know, I always hated you. You were just the reminder of how dad couldn't stay faithful to mom." Yang gave a punch into Ruby's gut, which caused Ruby to weakly cough, some blood coming out of her mouth from some internal injury that happened a while ago. Or recently. It had all blurred together.

"Every day I would see you get better treatment, because you were being conditioned. And of course you would. The daughter of a hunter and huntress would be strong. I was strong too!" Yang picked up the whip again and brought it down across Ruby's breast, eliciting a wet scream from the 16 year old.

"I have no idea why they chose me over you. Maybe because they were a little late getting to me?" She brought the whip down on Ruby's leg. Another scream. "Because I wasn't young enough?" The other leg this time suffered the whip. "Or maybe because your mother was Summer Rose, the Valedictorian of her year?" She spun Ruby around and slapped the whip across her back and her butt in two quick strokes.

Ruby had been reduced to a sobbing, hurting mess of a human body. Pain was the only thing that could be measured. How much or less of it there was. Her not-sister Yang was standing there like some demon taskmaster from the old legends of Remnant; whip in hand, red eyes, burning hair and a grin that would make anybody run away in fear.

"Frankly I don't give two shits about the reason, just that it happened. And now… now it's coming back to bite you in the ass. You may not be Rose, but you are paying for her sins. And I'm collecting." Yang brought her fist back and then punched Ruby in the gut once more, causing bloody vomit to come out of the girl's mouth, followed by considerably reduced in volume sobs.

"Oh, are you getting tired? That'll be a shame if you're already broken, I was hoping we'd have some more fun before then, but eh." Yang shrugged. "Just means that I have a little more leeway in what I do to you." Yang went over to the metal trolley and opened up a locked drawer, taking out a vile of red Dust grain. She poured it out onto a blank area, then got a metal rod and rolled it in the Dust. Once the rod had a good layer of the Dust on it, she put a finger on it and pushed some Aura into it. The Dust activated and the metal rod started glowing red hot as the Dust infused with the metal. Yang's grin grew even wider as she wielded the hot poker.

She came closer to Ruby and Ruby could see what Yang was planning. Her eyes widened and she started struggling again to get away from her. _No no no no! You can't._ "Please." Ruby whispered, but Yang heard her.

"Oh, so you _do_ have some life in you after all." Yang sounded positively gleeful at that. "Let's see how loud I can make you scream."

Ruby could almost _smell_ the hot metal rod as it came closer and closer to her stomach. She winced as she could feel the heat grazing her skin, as it started getting more and more painful. There was a new sickening smell that smelled like something was burning…

A sudden unlocking sound caused the heat to move away, and Ruby gave a breath of relief. It came out more like a wheeze with some sort of rattle inside her chest. _That's not good._ That was Ruby's first thought that wasn't pleading or pain induced for the past hour.

Yang turned and Ruby looked up to see Blake enter the room. "All right firecracker, time's up, let others have a turn." The brief hope that Ruby had when the cat Faunus entered vanished at those words.

"Ugh, do I have to?" Yang whined.

"Yes, now, out." Blake thumbed behind her out the door.

Yang groaned again and slammed the poker on the table. "At least use that at some point," she said.

"No promises. Remember that isn't my specialty." Blake said with a grin. "Now pick this stuff up. I like a clean environment."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You and your concoctions." Yang gathered up Ruby's clothes and took them out with her. "Have fun!"~ Yang sung as she walked out and the door. It closed behind her with a clang.

Blake looked back at the door for a moment before looking over to Ruby. "I'm sorry about her. She gets a little too enthusiastic about all this." She moved over to the table and pulled out some White Dust grain this time, then went over to Ruby. "This may sting a bit, but it'll feel better in a little bit." She sprinkled some of the grain on her hand and put it over one of the worst places where the whip struck, leaving bloody trails.

Ruby was confused. _Why is she healing me? _She hissed as Blake used a bit of Aura to activate the Dust. The White Dust sunk into Ruby's skin and started healing the cuts and bruises where Blake's hand was. It did sting and hurt almost as much as the whip, but it left behind healed, if a bit tender, skin. More importantly though, it brought relief.

Blake continued her healing, getting the worst bits of her. Ruby had to fight down a blush as Blake rubbed her butt and breasts to heal them, although she had to wonder if the lingering touches were a bit more than healing…

After a while Blake got most of her body, leaving behind healed but sore skin and muscle. She wiped her hands to get rid of excess Dust, then she got a glass from the trolley and went over to a tap, filling the glass with some water. "Would you like a drink? You must be thirsty." She said.

Ruby tried to speak, but couldn't, so she nodded as much as she could. Blake came over and lifted the glass up to her lips, then poured it into her mouth. A little bit dribbled out of her mouth, but the cool water was a blessing as it went down her throat and soothed the rawness from screaming. It was a little sweet, but it was the best thing she could taste right then. After a few sips of water Ruby coughed and could clear her throat. "Why?" She weakly asked. _Why did you give me the water?_

"Why?" Blake echoed. "Because it's the correct thing to do," she said as she gave Ruby another sip of water, then set the water down and pulled up the chair that wasn't bolted to the floor. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore, confused, tired, scared." Ruby answered. _Wait, that wasn't exactly what I wanted to say, _Ruby thought_. Ugh, by brain feels fuzzy. Maybe Yang hit me one too many times._

"Now, who are you?" Blake asked.

"Ruby Rose." _Huh? _

"Who are you really?"

"Ruby Rose."

"What's your Semblance?"

"Speed." _Why is my mouth moving without me wanting it to?_

"Who are you working for?" Blake questioned.

"No one."

"Are you a bounty hunter?"

"No." _What sort of question is that? Why am I even answering these questions?_

"What is your job then?" Blake continued.

"A huntress." _At least that one I can answer._

Blake blinked slowly, and there was a pause before she asked another question. "Who are you?"

"Ruby Rose." _You've already asked that… wait… We're doing this again?_ She thought with a groan.

"Do you support the White Fang?"

"No." _That's a fact. _

"Do you support the Ember Rebels then?"

"I do not know who they are or what that is." _Another fact, but not how I would have worded it. All right, _Ruby realized, _Blake drugged me with sort of truth serum. _

"How did you get into Beacon?"

Ruby was now fighting against whatever Blake gave her since she knew what it was, but wasn't having any major effect. "I stopped Roman Torchwick from robbing a Dust store. Professor Ozpin invited me to join and I skipped two years of Signal Academy."

Blake narrowed her eyes at Ruby. "Who gave you this information?"

"Nobody. I did all those things myself." _At least now I can modify what I'm going to say now. _Ruby's brain started clearing up and she tried asking a question. "W-why?" She was fighting her body at that point.

Blake looked up again. "Because you are not Ruby Rose. You are an impostor, a fake, and I intend to find out who sent you and how you got here." She got up and went over to the table and got out a needle with a syringe attached. Now her smile was more like Yang's was before. "Now, we could have done this the easy way, with you answering truthfully, but you've taken something to neutralize the serum's effectiveness. Now we do it the fun way."

Blake came over and almost caringly brushed Ruby's hair out of the way of her neck. She stuck the needle in and emptied out whatever was in it then backed away. "This should make you wish you had answered correctly."

Ruby flinched when she stuck the needle in, but felt nothing for a little bit later. She tried shaking her head when she felt her brain do a backflip, but that was the only weird thing. She looked up at Blake with a questioning look. "Was that supposed to do anything?"

Blake's grin grew wider, "Oh yes, it will."

Ruby looked on and saw Blake's grin grow wider and wider, until it was at an unnatural width, then her face split horizontally, skin tearing to show the muscles that worked her jaw. Her teeth turned razor sharp and lengthened, cutting into her lips, letting the blood flow freely from her mouth in red rivulets that pooled on the floor. The shadows grew behind Blake until all Ruby could see was her eyes and teeth.

Then the mouth opened and the gaping black maw lunged forward.

Ruby screamed in fright, but then screamed in agony when the mouth chomped down on her shoulder. The teeth cut into her skin and crushed the bones, letting blood spurt out. She could, through her torture, feel a tongue lapping up the flowing blood like how a cat would milk before the teeth retracted and she shrieked again.

The mouth grew wider and more teeth were added. That tongue came out and licked the blood in one seductive motion from her teeth before darting back into the pit.

"Mmmm, your blood is tasty." It was Blake's voice, coming from the abomination. "I want to taste all of you."

The mouth lunged again.

Ruby's screams echoed in the hallway.

* * *

"So what's new?" Emerald asked Mercury as she sided up to him. "Why's everybody crowded around the bulletin board?"

"Well, apparently a certain somebody we saw twice earlier today is in cell 1138, and there's been a declared open session every night until further notice." He said nonchalantly, but with a hint of disgust in his tone that only those who knew him could hear.

Emerald tried to fight down the revulsion at the thought of those open sessions. She went to one with Mercury as part of their cover and had to spend the rest of the day in the bathroom throwing up her meals because of the things she saw in there. It was a disgusting violation of human decency, and the people in those torture chambers rarely survived past a few days. They were for people that had no further use except for 'entertainment'. The sad thing was is that the people who signed up enjoyed _doing_ that sort of thing. It took a certain mind to do acts like that, and the vast majority of those people were in this 'school'.

It was that sort of thing that Emerald joined up to put an end to and restore some semblance of peace instead of military law enforced by fear.

"You mean Rose?" _How did she get stuck in there? She's one of the worst of this lot. _

"Yep." Mercury said, nodding.

"How did that happen?" Emerald asked.

"I don't know yet, but we'll find out with two ways."

"You have a link to the security footage and we're signed up for the session, right?" Emerald guessed.

"Yes and at 9 o'clock. One hour allotted time." He answered both questions.

"You do realize that we could be jeopardizing our mission here by hacking the security in this way." Emerald said softly, to prevent anyone from overhearing them.

"Hey, we've already hacked them ages ago. Might as well do something different with it."

"So we figure out what the deal with Rose is and then what?"

"Well, we can go about that in two ways," Mercury said, starting to walk back to their room, Emerald following. "First is if Rose just screwed up majorly. Our goal is still our priority."

"Aaaaand the second?" Emerald prompted.

"The second is highly unlikely. She's had a change of heart and they're punishing her for it."

_Rose, have a change of heart?_ "That's about as unlikely as the Grimm becoming cuddly pets we let little kids have."

"I know. She's in the top ten targets we have, but if she truly has had a change of heart…" He trailed off to let it sink in.

_If Rose _has_ changed, then we could persuade her to join us and fight against the Hunters. But will she fight against her family? She might. She never got along well with them according to our Intel, especially with her half-sister._ "Don't get your hopes up. We risk everything if we make the wrong assumption." Emerald said.

"Which is why we're about to look at the footage." Mercury said, pulling out his scroll and downloading the security file they wanted.

A few minutes later they entered their temporary dorm and started the file. They saw Rose sitting cuffed to a chair across from Goodwitch. The audio started with Goodwitch talking. _"Now then, we're all alone. Let's start from the beginning from where we left off in the Commander's office. This all started with a Dust accident…"_

* * *

Ruby was in hell, she was sure of it. She passed through all seven circles and saw Grim himself, which took the form of her former friend Blake Belladonna. Lucid thought was a distant memory, covered in layers of drugs that Blake pumped in her. She had it timed to a fine art of which one would end before she would put the next one in. They all started blending together, but Ruby could recall a few that stood out.

The first was the horror drug, the first one Blake put in her. Ruby could still feel the pain of where that monster devoured her with those teeth. Each bite, each pulverized bone, each chunk of flesh that was torn off. All of it. Those razor teeth puncturing her all over. Penetrating, biting, tearing. Sucking up the blood that Ruby bled. Grimm were more civilized in their eating habits than monster-Blake was.

Another drug was probably infused with Red Dust, as when Blake put it in it started out as fire ants biting her around the injection point. Then it grew until it felt like her blood was boiling and her skin on fire without the actual fire. The closest she could pinpoint the feeling was that one time she ate a Deathstalker Pepper for a dare, except the feeling was all over and inside her body, not just her mouth. By the end of it, she could feel her skin wanting to peel without the sunburn.

There were a couple nightmare drugs that made her see her worst thoughts. Yang getting devoured by a Nevermore, Weiss getting gored by a Borbatusk, Blake getting crushed by an Ursa Rex. Her team, not those fakes that were with her today, dying. All because she made a stupid decision. It got worse when it showed what she always imagined what happened when her mother died. Her surrounded by Beowolfs, getting overwhelmed after hours of fighting, and then being eaten alive while she was still breathing, tears and blood mixing together. All that would be left was a blood-stained snow and a few pieces of flesh that the Grimm missed.

She cried. She cried for her mom. She cried for her team. She cried for herself. She cried and screamed until her vocal chords ruptured, then screamed some more when Blake shoved some White Dust down her throat to heal it so she would continue screaming. Eventually, Ruby gave out on screaming when it became too much and just whimpered, twitching from the hallucinations. And she knew they were drug-induced hallucinations. The problem was that she could only remember that when they were wearing off and some form of rational thought returned to her. But it was fleeting, as Blake knew when to start the next drug.

In the end, after a drug that made her feel if her skin was being torn off again, Blake gave her some more of that truth serum and asked the same questions once more. She got the same answers, but with more crying and pleading, since all the other drugs were affecting the serum's effectiveness in keeping to just answers.

"Hmmm," Blake hummed after she asked who Ruby was again. "Apparently your mental strength is greater than I thought it would be. Either that or you've been literally brainwashed so you could be a sleeper agent. Either one is impressive." She grabbed one more needle though and Ruby instinctively tried to move away, but her body wasn't responding too well to her commands. Being chained up didn't assist her efforts in the slightest.

"This will be the last one Rose," Blake said as she put the needle in her neck again. Her entire neck was bruised from all the puncture points. "And it won't cause any hallucinations, or dreams, or any other effect like that. However, it will make you feel everything more intensely. Every time your heart beats, you'll feel it shake your body. The blood going through your veins, you'll feel it moving. Pain, pleasure, you'll all feel it twice as much. My time is almost up, so I'll hand you to Weiss now, and I'm sure you two are going to have a _fantastic_ time." Blake smiled creepily and then opened the door.

It was quiet. So quiet that she could hear her heart beating in her chest and the slight clanking of the chains holding her up. The cuffs around her hands have dug into her skin, not enough to cut, but definitely enough to bruise. Her whole body felt like she had been backpacking out in the mountains for a week, running away from Grimm the entire time. Her body weight was being supported solely by her cuffed hands and it was growing increasingly painful. She couldn't move her fingers at all.

That wasn't the worst though. She could feel her body growing more and more sensitive to every little thing. The coldness of the cell, the squeezing of the chains, even her weight seemed to increase little by little. Her heart was beating heavily, as if someone was playing a drum inside her. _Thum-thum. Thum-thum. Thum-thum._

Ruby whimpered again, the sound echoing in the empty room. _Why is this happening? I told them the truth several times, even while drugged, so why am I still here? Shouldn't I at least be moved to a jail cell instead of… Is it sad that I_ want _to go to jail? It would be better than here by a long shot._

After another long moment of silence before Ruby shifted, causing her to hiss as the chains rubbed her skin, causing it to feel as if someone had ripped the skin off. She stilled as much as she could and the feeling went away and she sighed with relief.

_So my team, and the headmaster and Goodwitch are all… yeah, evil would be the best description now, and apparently the Hunters now use Grimm. My Dust theory had been blown out of the water since I've been…_ Ruby shuddered and felt even colder. _It seems that history has changed, but how? Was it because of that Crystal?... No, that can't be it. Things are the same yet different, in the worst way. Certain parallels are still there, like how Goodwitch didn't question me about Torchwick's Dust robbery… Everything's been flipped. Sounds like one of Jaune's sci-fi comic books…_

Ruby winced again as the door opened once more and let in a white goddess. Ruby blinked and the image turned into Weiss. Ruby shivered as she felt a cold draft come in and stay when the door closed. Weiss' blue eyes locked with Ruby's silver for several minutes. Then Weiss' gaze drifted down and Ruby flushed, realizing that she was still naked.

Weiss smirked. "You may not be my Mistress, but you still blush like her." Ruby blushed even harder, feeling like her face is on fire. _Oum, why am I blushing? I don't even like Weiss_ _that way… right? No, stop! Not now!_

"But even then, it boils down to your identity. You aren't Rose," Weiss stated bluntly, "even though you claim to be. Delusions of grandeur aside, you wouldn't even hold a candle to what my Mistress can do. She's… intense," she said with a shiver, "and I doubt that you have the same drive she does. You aren't adaptable or cunning enough, and nowhere near manipulative or threatening…" Weiss' left eye twitched, the one with the scar over it.

Ruby just stared at Weiss, unable to really formulate any response until… "Sounds…" she coughed, "Sounds like she's your hero." Ruby said, putting as much sarcasm as she could into her voice.

Ruby cried out in shocked pain when Weiss slapped her. She didn't hit as hard as not-Yang did, but it hurt more than before. Tears came to her eyes again, the number of time that happened today countless. "Rose was, is, and never will be, my 'hero'," Weiss spat. "She's the one that gave me this," she pointed to the scar on her face, "on the first day here. But she is an inspiration to us all," Weiss continued, her tone changing to a conversational one as she walked over to that damn trolley.

"Rose was trained to become the best Huntress ever. She started at five, which is when it's best to start children on their path, by enslaving a Beowolf cub. She kept it for months before she killed it with a knife. Since then she's only gotten better at being a Huntress. Building Bloody Rose herself and entering Beacon two years ahead of schedule… Mistress is the one that many hopes ride on.

"And you've taken her place!" Weiss turned around holding a wickedly sharp knife in her left hand, and a vile of white Dust in the other. Ruby once again tried to get away from a crazy girl that looked like her teammate, with even less success than previous attempts.

"Don't bother. If you haven't escaped those chains yet, it either means that you can't or you don't want to. And frankly, you don't strike me as having the same… desires as Pyrrha does. Mistress was always more of the 'Jaune' type, but less on the pain, which was good because it made sex that much better."

Ruby blanched at Weiss' near off-hand mention of… sex. Then almost choked on her own bile at the implication. _Oh, that's, ew, gross. Rose and Weiss…? That would never happen in my world… wait. My world?_

Whatever thought Ruby had vanished when Weiss sliced open Ruby's arm with the knife. It was a shallow cut; just enough to let a trickle of blood flow, but the pain was incredible. She could feel every skin cell get carved, how deep the knife went, how cold it was, and how her nerves reacted. Someone had decided to cut away her arm and peel the flesh away from her bones. This new pain caused Ruby to hiss and bite her lip in an effort not to cry out.

"Ah, Blake gave you some of that sensitivity serum. Good. This'll make this more amusing." Weiss made another cut on Ruby's other arm and Ruby drew blood, biting her lip, not able to prevent a whine from escaping.

"So you do have some spine after all." Slice slice. Two quick cuts on each of Ruby's cheeks finally broke her composure and Ruby cried out. "Not enough of it though… How about the other extreme?" She flipped the knife around so she held the blade and reached down.

Ruby screamed, this time in disgustingly induced pleasure as Weiss rubbed the hilt against her woman lips. "Nope, not at all," Weiss commented, but continued rubbing. Ruby never felt more violated in her life. First of all it was her teammate (her not-teammate but close enough) doing this to her, second, it was _Weiss_ doing this. While in the deepest part of her mind Ruby wouldn't have protested, it would be under _normal_ circumstances. Not like this. Third, her treacherous body was actually enjoying this, despite everything her mind was telling it.

Ruby clenched her eyes shut just as her body tensed and a wave of pleasure washed though her, followed by a bought of pain as her arms and legs pulled against the chains. She was in tears from the agony and the humiliation. Her first orgasm was caused by not-Weiss and was rape, no denying it.

Weiss grinned as she saw Ruby clench and relax. "Apparently I can still please you like I could Mistress, but I'm not here for that." Weiss turned the knife around and made a cut in Ruby's side. Ruby screamed and could feel the blood trickling down from her cuts before becoming sticky and clinging to her body.

For the next hour, Weiss then proceeded to demonstrate that she is as precise with that knife as she is with Myrtenaster; never missing a bare patch of skin to be cut, never missing a moment to make Ruby scream in pain, and never letting Ruby bleed out by making relatively shallow cuts. Each slice was pure agony to Ruby and once again tore her larynx from screaming. This time Weiss didn't shove White Dust into her mouth to heal that part of her and Ruby rasped her cries of torture from then on.

After the hour was up, Ruby was a bloody mess. Weiss used the White Dust to heal the surface wounds, but Ruby still had blood all over her from here she bled. Weiss wiped the knife as she put it away. "This has been fun Rose, but my time is up. I'll send in the next person to entertain you soon." Weiss gave a smile and exited.

Ruby could barely raise her head. She hadn't eaten, hadn't used the toilet, hadn't been let down, and had been tortured for several hours already. And it wasn't even the end of the day yet.

Ruby shivered, her body loosing control of itself. If she could, she would be crying, but her tears had run out. She was alone in a school of enemies. She had no fantasies of escape, because who would help her?

Ruby Rose had given up on trying to understand why, or how. Her world had shrunk down to just trying to stay awake and breath properly. Hours would pass by, with people coming in and beating her, cursing her, cutting and burning her. It was a small mercy that no man, or woman, tried to force themselves on her since Weiss, but Ruby had a feeling that it was only a matter of time.

She was loosing hope.

Beacon was winning the fight to break her, not caring for the truth or even lies.

Ruby needed a miracle, which was looking less likely as the hours passed.

Soon nine o'clock rolled along and two figures came into the cell…

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**Before you throw me to the Beowolves, I will say this "IT WILL GET BETTER FOR RUBY"! (I just hope I haven't driven everybody away by now :( **

**Anyway... yea, don't have anything to say really. It could have been worse for Ruby, but I indeed toned it down, believe it or not. Some things needed to be in here for the story's sake. I have a reason for everything. **

**So, if you feel up to it, Read, Review, Favorite, Follow! (R.R.F.F.)**

**-OrangeGalen**


	6. The Rescue

**Hallow agin! Welcome back to the madness that is this story. I was surprised at how quickly I got the other chapter out, since I was on vacation, and a couple of new stories as well. It's strange how I write better on long car rides than I do at home... eh, I've accepted my brain's weird. **

**Anyway, thanks for sticking around, and enjoy this chapter... somehow.**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY**

* * *

**Edit: 11/12/15. Small changes and touch up.**

* * *

Considered chapter title: Escape Plan

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

Dead silence. They both stared down at the scroll in their hands. The screen had automatically turned off to conserve power a while ago. They had just finished watching the fourth security video, hours after it happened. Hours of one of their targets getting tortured by some of their other targets. And she was not the same person she was before. No, most definitely not.

"Well fuck, this complicates things." Mercury eloquently stated, breaking the silence.

Emerald turned to look at him, "No shit Sherlock. Are we still going to go through with our original plan or are we going to save her?" Watching those videos always dragged something ugly up in her, and she wanted to save those that were in the same situation. Even though Ruby Rose had been on their hit list practically since day one, this had changed everything.

Mercury was silent thinking this over. _Rose's family were the ones that killed my own, but from what I saw, this person… Ruby is completely different than what we've seen. She says that Summer Rose is her mother even though she's denied it all her life. That Dust crystal they've talked about must have done _something_ to her… is it worth the risk? _

Mercury slowly nodded. "We're going to save her," he echoed. Then he blinked and went back to his normal self. "We'll have to move fast since we weren't the last ones on that sign up list."

Emerald gave a mental sigh of relief. _Even if I don't like Rose, this girl is someone different. I think all those… videos,_ she mentally shivered, _proved that. So now she's just another Huntress that we can save._ "We'll only have an hour to get her stuff, break her out, and get out of Beacon." _We both know if we do this, our cover will be blown for good. Even though this isn't Rose, they'll be in a mad panic because she's the next best thing. And if Ruby even has half the training Rose does, then they'll definitely want her back._

"So, I'll go into the armory and get her weapon and-"

"Uhh, no," Mercury cut her off.

Emerald narrowed her eyes, "And why's that?" She asked, a warning in her voice.

"One of us needs to go to the armory and the other needs to get her effects, and I think it would be better if I _wasn't_ seen carrying women's clothes. Or at least, it would draw less attention to us." Mercury stated.

"Oh." _Okay, that makes some sense,_ Emerald thought. "So we'll both go then. We can't split up in this case. We'll need a way out though. Back door to the landing pad for extraction?"

"We'll have to divert the security cameras along the way, which won't be easy." Mercury said with a small smirk.

Emerald rolled her eyes, "Yeah, for anyone other than you. That's one of the reasons why you're here."

"Yep, I'm the one that does the work, you're the one that looks pretty."

Emerald's eye twitched and she suppressed a growl before thinking up a comeback. "So you think I look pretty?" She said, flirtatiously.

Mercury shrugged, "I've seen worse." This time Emerald did growl. It was a little game they played, Mercury would say something, Emerald would try to get a rise out of him or get him to admit that he liked her, and he would completely avoid it. _Although that wasn't a no… _After a moment though they became serious again.

"So, diverting the cameras. Feedback loop in Ruby's cell to make it look like she's still there?" Emerald clarified.

"Of course," Mercury said, "but at any point though, we need to be ready for everything to go to hell. They'll notice the loop eventually, which is why we wait a minute before going in."

"I can get past the locks on the armory and the storage lockers. That's my specialty," Emerald said.

"We get them, go to the cell and free her… she probably won't be in a state to wear the clothes she came in, so we'll have to get a robe or something."

"I'll grab my bathrobe. It's not like I'll be coming back for it." _Packing, that's another thing we need to do. Thankfully we don't have a lot. And the bathrobe isn't even mine. One little victory against Beacon. _

"White Dust and a small medical kit are necessary to get the major wounds first so she'll survive the trip." They both knew what happens in those cells and held no illusions to what condition she would be in.

"Yeah. Oh, should we call Cinder and tell her that we're about to expose ourselves?" She asked, wincing a bit.

"We'd better. We need to arrange transport anyway. Might as well tell her what's going on and see what she thinks…" He looked down at his scroll and stared at it.

Emerald rolled her eyes. "Are you calling her or am I gonna' have to?" Mercury responded with a glare and turned the scroll on and put in a number. Then he put it on speaker. The scroll rang once, then during the second ring it was answered.

_"What's so important that you had to call?"_ Came Cinder's melodious voice from the other side, laced with just a little irritation.

"Hello to you too Queen," Mercury said, using her codename. "We have another huntress that needs to get out. Extraction time window at nine-thirty to ten. Transport to and then a doctor at WFHQ," he said briefly, knowing that every second could potentially be traced.

_"Very well."_ Cinder said.

"You should be aware however that if we rescue this huntress, our cover will be blown and the entire school, and probably the kingdom, will be in an uproar," Emerald added in.

_"And just who is so important to rescue that our entire plan could be placed in jeopardy?"_ Came Cinder's scathing question.

"Target Black Reaper," Mercury said, using their codename for Rose.

There was silence except for a little bit of static. Then Cinder responded, sounding definitely off, _"_Black Reaper _is the one you want to rescue?" _She whispered that into the other end, as if someone was on her end listening.

"Something happened to her, some Dust crystal accident, and she thinks she's a different person now. They've had her in their 'interrogation cells' for a few hours now," Emerald said, knowing full well Cinder also knew what happens in those cells.

There was more silence. _"Are you certain? Is this something you want to do?" _She asked.

"It's not something that we want to do; it needs to be done." Emerald stated.

"Besides, from what we've seen, she seems like she would be sympathetic to your cause now," Mercury added.

They waited, strangely nervous, for Cinder's answer. Finally it came. _"Very well. I'll send a stealth Bullhead to the cliffside of Beacon and contact Roman to expect you. I'll get DuFresne to prepare for a torture victim at WFHQ. Once she's relatively recovered, I'll send somebody to meet her and see if she'll join up."_

"Thank you," Emerald said.

_"Don't thank me yet. This still may be all a trick. But you're two of my Knights, and I'll trust your judgment until proven wrong. I'll get everything ready on my end. You do the same." _

"Alright," Mercury said just as the line dropped. They were both silent for a while before Mercury quipped, "Well, looks like we're going to do an old fashioned jail break."

"That's in a couple of weeks," Emerald said, referring to a later plan.

Mercury shrugged. "Still applies." He stood up. "Now, we have some things to arrange." Emerald stood up and they both began packing for what was going to be their last night as infiltrators at Beacon. Emerald made sure to grab two fluffy bathrobes as well.

What, they were fluffy, it's not like they were going to good use anyway.

* * *

"Well, that was a good stress reliever. I hope I can do this again; it was nice. My team would probably like a turn, so you might see them later if you're still, y'know, _alive_. Though that might not stop some people…" A nameless and faceless student finished pulling up his pants and walked out of the cell.

There was something hanging limply by a few chains from the ceiling and the floor, swinging slightly, but one had to look a little closer to get past the outer grime layer to tell what it was.

It had four limbs and a head, with black hair that turned a dark red at the tips, not to be confused with the blood red coloring that was, well, blood getting the thing's hair wet from several wounds.

There were parts of the thing that one could see skin on, but most of it was covered in both dried and still flowing wet blood, ranging to injuries received several hours back, or just a few minutes ago.

The slender build and general shape of the thing pointed to a younger person, and other parts made it clear the thing was a girl. She was hanging limply from the chains, blood and other fluids dripping from various places on her body.

If one looked, you could make the mistake of believing she wasn't breathing. But after a couple of seconds she took in a haggard, wheezing breath that made her bare chest lift upwards slightly before the breath was wetly exhaled, some more blood trickling out of her mouth.

There was nothing happening in her mind anymore. It had shut down to protect itself from the things that had been happening to the body, only barely keeping the functions necessary for living working. And her body was well on its way to shutting down.

If her brain were functioning properly, she would have been screaming in horror and pain, or alternatively would be in a coma. As it was, she was nearly in that state, barely feeling a dull ache through her body. Her weakened Aura was barely alive, just keeping her alive as well.

It was silent save for the occasional _drip drip_ sound of something wet hitting the floor.

She barely moved, barely felt anything. Barely was alive.

Slowly, with great effort, one of her eyes opened, revealing a dull silver iris that was usually filled with laughter and fun. None of that was there now. Only the barest hint of pained existence was inside it now.

The cell door opened again and the silver eye closed.

A single tear leaked out.

* * *

"I don't know what to make of this," Weiss said as she paced across RWBY's dorm room. "How can a Dust Crystal make someone believe that they are someone else? In fact, change everything about her?"

"There still is a lot we don't know about Dust effects," Blake added from her bed, indifferent to Weiss' pacing. "It could be a number of things."

"It was probably that White Dust," Yang said from the bathroom, finally washing off the blood from her hands with water. "White and Black don't interact together well. Personal experiences should tell you two that," Yang smirked.

Weiss narrowed her eyes at Yang's direction. "It should be White and Yellow instead." She growled.

"Yea, whatever. And you have a flat chest. Honestly I don't know what Rose found interesting in you. Or maybe it _was_ _in_ you, she's eaten you out enough times to know."

Weiss snarled and picked up a letter opener that was on the desk and threw it at Yang. Unfortunately for her, her throwing aim was the opposite of her sword skills and it stuck in the cabinet about three feet away from Yang's knees. "Fuck you!"

"_No thanks!~_ That's Blake's job!" Yang replied.

"Leave me out of your petty squabble," the cat Faunus commented.

Weiss snarled again but dropped it. "We still don't know what caused Mistress to change. Almost everything was different about her, even her style of fighting changed."

Yang paused and looked into the mirror, her red eyes reflecting back at her. "True," she said, remembering the Grimm Pit earlier.

_Rose, or whoever she is used Bloody Rose differently. It was different, now being a bolt-action rifle that I highly think is a sniper, plus the scythe part was a clean cut now, not serrated. She was moving around more, and had a_ lot _more agility than Rose but with the same speed, and she used her gun as a means to get that agility. Definitely different. Would be interesting to fight her, that is, if she weren't going to die soon,_ Yang thought. She grabbed a towel and dried her hands. _Fucking damnit, even when she's not Rose, she's still great at fighting,_ Yang growled in her thoughts.

"But we shouldn't test another crystal again. What if one of us changed as well? Or worse we got a Rose that's a pussyfest."

"Pacifist." Blake corrected.

"That too."

Weiss gasped dramatically, "So the slut _does_ have a brain!"

Yang's hair started flaming, causing Weiss to back up a step even though she was across the room. "If you value your life Schnee, you should leave. Right. Now." Yang's voice was now the opposite of her flaming hair, colder than anything Weiss could do on a good day.

While Weiss knew that they could fight to a barely sustainable standstill normally, if Yang's enraged she would just punch through her glyphs anyway. _Sometimes retreating is the better part of valor. _

A scurrying of feet and the slamming of a door signified the heiress' retreat. Yang closed her eyes and forced her Semblance to calm down.

Just then the door opened again and the remaining two members of RWBY looked around to see the leader of their sister team in the doorway.

"What did you do to make the Ice Bitch run like Hell was after her?" Jaune questioned.

Blake gestured at Yang for her to answer, "Just one little slip-up. It's fine. I'll just get her in practice." Yang said.

"Fair enough," Jaune said as he stepped further into the dorm. He was fully armored and it was evident that he was just on a mission, judging from the bloodstains on his armor. His armor was a dark smokey grey, and his pants were a dark blue almost black. His gloves were a dark leather brown, and the belts were two different shades of brown. His hoodie was black and had red-orange sleeves. Crocea Mors was strapped to his waist, the shield part having gone a color change to black when he took it from the Arc family.

"So what's with all the people talking about a new prisoner?" He asked as he leaned against the doorway.

"That's a long conversation," Blake said.

"Indulge me." Jaune said.

"Alright," Yang said, "there was a Dust incident with Rose which caused her to change, as in, everything. Her memories, her weapon, how she looks, how she _fights_ even. She isn't Rose, but she claims to be."

"Actually, she claims she's Ruby Rose, her full name," Blake added.

"Not…" Yang was about to say 'not helping' but gave up on that. "Yeah, she does. It's really fuckin' weird. It's like she's a whole new person. A weak, pathetic person. And she thinks that that whore Summer is her mother."

"Really?" Jaune said in disbelief. "Rose has hated her practically since she started training. That crystal really changed her that much?"

"Yep." Yang said.

"So she's down in the cells right now?" Jaune said, his interest growing.

"Oh yea, been there since three."

Jaune smiled, no warmth in it. "I wonder if there's going to be any left for my team after."

"Eh, I'm sure there'll be something," Yang shrugged.

"Hmm. Anyway, I'm gonna' sign up and then get Pyrrha to clean my armor; some White Fang scum dirtied it up on our last mission," he said, pouting, pointing to the bloodstains.

"Tongue cleaning?" Blake asked.

"Uh-huh. She'll be tied up in an hour. That mission really got the blood flowing, in more ways than one. Going to relieve some stress onto her." Jaune said with a lecherous grin.

"Just make sure she's able to walk this time," Blake said dryly. "Last time she couldn't walk straight for a week."

"No promises. You know how she gets; won't say 'no' to anything…" He trailed off. "Or at least in the 'no, don't do that I'm being serious' way."

"Whatever. Your sex life is your sex life. Go get your kicks." Yang rolled her eyes, deciding not to mention _again_ that the walls aren't entirely soundproof. Because Jaune knew that. Didn't stop him anyway.

Jaune smirked and exited the room, closing the door.

* * *

"Ready?"

"Definitely," Mercury said. They had a few minutes before their session started and they had hammered out a few more details of their rescue/escape plan. They had put the bags with their personal effects near the extraction point and hid them so no one would notice them and they had downloaded everything they had onto two chips each and stashed one in each bag and another on their person so that the information would somehow get to the Rebels.

Mercury opened the door to their room and they both went out, leaving the lights and water on, wasting energy and money, as another 'fuck you' message. Emerald smirked as she carried a backpack that she 'appropriated' from the school store with healing Dust and the second robe. It was a good idea she took the robes. They were nice.

They briskly walked through the school's halls and nodded once when they split up. Mercury went to the weapons storage, where all the pods that people kept their weapons in. He ignored them and continued to the back room where the sealed weapons were kept, usually from prisoners they captured.

There was a lock on the door. Mercury rolled his eyes, _It's not even an electric lock._ He took out his scroll and set up the camera loop, showing an empty room, before he took two pieces of wire out of his pocket and stuck them in the lock. Less than ten seconds later the lock clicked and he opened the door.

Inside there were several drawers that had a little more advanced electric lock on them, but nothing worth mentioning. Mercury looked around at the labels on the drawers and saw a few familiar weapons from his fellow rebels, and a few from the deceased Arcs, may they rest in peace.

He found the label that said 'Ruby Rose Impostor Weapon: Mechashift Smooth Blade Scythe with Bolt Action Rifle- contains extra clips'. _Well, that's an impressive weapon,_ Mercury thought as he hacked the lock and took out the weapon. It had been mechashifted into a manageable size. _Unfortunately not a manageable weight, _Mercury thought as he hefted the scyfle out of the drawer. _How does she swing this thing around? _

_"Mercury, come in,"_ Emerald's voice came through the earpiece he had on.

"Yep?"

_"The storage room's clear, I need a loop."_

"Give me a moment to get out." Mercury put down his backpack and stuffed the weapon in it, making sure to avoid hitting the Dust inside, then went out and locked the door behind him. He pulled out his scroll and ended the weapon storage loop and navigated his way to the normal storage room. Double-checking to verify that it was clear, he started a loop that repeated the last five seconds. It shouldn't be noticeable.

"Alright, you're clear. I'll head down to the cell and wait for you."

"Alright." Emerald said, and then stopped the communication. She opened the door to the storage lockers and went to where the newer additions would be. They were only protected by simple locking mechanisms and easily hacked. However, it took a few minutes for Emerald to find Rose's, or Ruby's rather, stuff from the way it looked from her memory. The best indicator was that red cloak she wore. Eventually she opened up one drawer and was confronted with a bundle of red and black. "Yep, this is hers," Emerald said to herself. She gathered what was in there and put them in her bag, then relocked the drawer and exited.

"I'm out, stop the loop," Emerald said to her earpiece as she walked towards the cell.

_"Done. Successful?" _

"Yes, you?"

_"Yep, I'm almost at Rose's, or Ruby's cell." _

"I'll be there in a minute or two." The communication was stopped and Emerald walked quickly to the cell, but not hurriedly to draw attention to herself. There were a few students that she passed, but thankfully they were all doing their own thing. Honestly, Emerald was nervous. They were going to break out someone that was highly important from one of the most secure and dangerous facilities in the world. Somewhat natural if you think about it.

Fortunately she made it without incident and saw Mercury leaning against the wall outside cell 1138 with his bag next to him. "Don't worry, I already did the camera thing before I got here," he said in greeting.

"Good," Emerald said, but noticed the look on Mercury's face. "What?"

He sighed. "She's not good, and that's just from the camera footage I saw." He put in the code to the door and it swung open, right at nine o'clock.

They both resisted gaging as they entered, the smell of burned flesh, blood, sweat, urine, and sex assaulted their nostrils. Then they looked up and did gag.

The person hanging in the chains could barely be described as a person at that point. There was no place on her body that was clear of marks, and if it wasn't for the occasional breath she took they would have assumed she was dead already. Blood covered practically every inch of her remaining skin, with bruises and burn scars covering the rest.

A pool of combined fluids was below her and Emerald was horrified to see white globs mixed in with the blood and piss. "Those fucking bastards," she said, horrified.

"We need to get her down," Mercury said mechanically and went over to the chains and picked them open. Emerald followed and caught her when Ruby's arms were released, making the girl weakly whimper, signifying that she was still alive. She was completely limp, having absolutely no muscle control over her body, so Emerald had her full weight, which wasn't as much as it was before.

"Careful, she probably has broken bones," Mercury said. _Amongst other things, _he thought as he twisted himself to avoid stepping in the fluids. He unlocked the bottom shackles and saw Emerald carry Ruby away from the wall to a cleaner area. He grabbed a couple of cloths from the trolley and went over to the sink and rinsed them in water.

He then went over to his bag and brought out some of the White Dust grain and poured it on the damp cloth, then put it on Ruby's midriff, where some of the worst of it was, then some of the arms and legs. The cloths soaked up a lot of blood immediately. He used a bit of Aura to activate the Dust so that they would heal her wounds a bit, but not much was done. _They must have kept using White Dust on her until her body developed an overdose immunity._ It was a well-known problem amongst medical fields of Dust usage that if one uses a certain kind of Dust on a person for too long, that person develops immunity to it for a period until the body uses up the Dust. If used too much, then the Dust would have little to no effect, such as the case right now.

That and her Aura was down to dangerously almost non-existent levels, barely keeping her alive. _She must have a strong Aura to keep her alive after all that's happened to her. _

Mercury looked up at Emerald's growl. "They fucking raped her! Several times!" Her naturally red eyes were almost glowing like Xiao Long's did constantly, and her Aura flared. A sure sign that Emerald wanted to raise this school to the ground. And Mercury would help if they weren't pressed for time.

"We'll let Doc worry about that later. We need to stabilize her so we can get her out of here." He tied off the cloths and rummaged around in the cabinets until he found some alcohol. He grabbed another cloth and poured some of the alcohol onto it, then said to Ruby, "I don't know if you can hear me, but this will sting like a bitch." Getting no reply he started wiping off Ruby's face. It was a bad sign that she only scrunched her face a little and let out a little whine.

"We have to go," Emerald mentioned as she looked at the time. They had about five minutes before the extraction window started. Mercury nodded and brought out his scroll, implementing a video loop on all cameras in the school, making them repeat the last five minutes until corrected. It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do.

"Let's go," Mercury said. Emerald nodded and pulled out the robe and wrapped Ruby in it. They got on their packs then Emerald grabbed Ruby's arms under her armpits and Mercury her legs and they lifted her up off the floor.

"Try and not shake her around too much," Emerald said, then she kicked open the door and they started jogging through the corridors to the Cliffside, where the airship extraction would supposedly be. They took the routes where there was least likely to be people and waited when there were people to pass by. It felt like an agonizingly long time when in reality it was just a few minutes. They stuck to the shadows and prayed silently to Oum that they could get out of there.

_This is the most dangerous, stupidest thing I have ever done,_ Emerald thought as she opened another door. _But at the same time, one of the best things too. As much as she might or might not be Rose, nobody deserves to be treated like that. I would rather Ozpin of all people get a clean death than this. _

They made it too the last door that lead outside and freedom, so they stopped to catch their breaths and rearrange Ruby's makeshift bandages. After a few moments they made eye contact and nodded, getting Ruby up again.

The problem lay outside the door. Or rather, what wasn't. It was a clear rock and dirt plateau for over a hundred meters with no cover. With two people carrying somebody, they would have to move fast since they weren't able to protect themselves from fire. And since Beacon's curfew was at eleven, then there were bound to be people outside.

"Alright, three, two, one, now!" Emerald kicked the door open and they started moving as fast as they could. A few seconds later they heard a shout of surprise and alarm. Half a minute later, the alarms started going off.

"I'm surprised it took them that long!" Mercury shouted as they ran.

"Shut up and run!" Emerald shouted back at him. They had covered about half the distance before they heard running behind them. They didn't look back, focusing on the cliff.

It was a good thing since they were just slightly off. About 30 meters from the point they were headed to the sound of a jet came up and a Bullhead appeared that was slick black in color. Emerald was surprised at the sight. _They pulled out the stealth Bullhead for this? Cinder must have pulled some strings with Seneca to get that ready. _The stealth Bullhead was a state-of-the-art airship that was designed to make less noise and be invisible to air radar due to the Dust-infused metal plating. The two problems with it were that if the plating was lost, the ship would become traceable, and the ship was small due to the plate's density. It also used up a lot of fuel and energy. But they weren't made for combat, generally used for insertion and extraction, such as now.

The two adjusted their run so they were now headed to the open side door, where a White Fang member was pointing a gun out at the pursuers. The White Fang member started firing when he saw a threat, causing a few Dust bullets to fly through the air.

A seeming eternity later, Mercury and Emerald reached the Bullhead and placed Ruby inside and dumped their bags. "I'll grab our things!" Emerald shouted before dashing out and headed to a few large rocks on the ground.

She rolled as a hail of bullets whizzed past her, hitting the ground as well. Her hands now unencumbered, she pulled out her two guns and started firing, not caring if she actually hit anybody as long as she caused them to take cover by hitting the dirt. She reached the rocks and tugged, revealing them to be camouflaged packs. She grabbed them and ran back, jumping in the Bullhead just as it started pulling away from the cliff. The White Fang member had a bleeding shoulder but was holding his gun singlehandedly, still firing. She could hear bullets pinging off the metal, which was thankfully thick enough to prevent any real damage.

However, their collective anxiety rose when they heard the pilot say, "Shit, AA's!" She swerved just as a line of powerful Dust rounds shot through where they were a second ago.

Mercury looked out to see that the anti-aircraft guns around Beacon had activated and were looking for a target. That last one was only able to shoot because someone was manually targeting it, an unfortunate thing for them, rather than letting the computer do it.

"Hang on!" The pilot said and pulled them into a sharp decline, getting them out of the AA gun's line of fire before accelerating as fast as they could go towards Vale.

It was a couple of minutes before the pilot announced, "Alright ladies and gents, no sign of pursuit, we're home free."

Mercury smirked at the familiar tone of the pilot, one that everyone that was in their group knew. "Well done Four-Seven-Niner," he said, using her flight name.

"Honestly Mercury, it's Phyllis." She said, slightly amused by the grey haired man.

"Still a good job."

"Happy to be flying one of these birds."

Emerald had to crack a smile before it faded when she looked down at the robed, bloody form below her. _You will get better Rose, or Ruby, whoever you are,_ Mercury silently commanded the figure.

_You will get better._

_And you will help us reclaim our destiny. _

The trip was silent the rest of the way to the White Fang Headquarters.

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**Well, the road to recovery starts now. And it'll be a long road ahead of her. **

**Kiddos to those that caught RvB references, even the skewed ones. **

**Anyway, I'll be updating my RWBYxHarry Potter story next (then my PokéFrozen one), and thanks for all the ones that R.R.F.F-ed it, which was a lot for only a couple of days of being up...**

**Speaking of which, make sure to R.R.F.F!**

**-OrangeGalen**


	7. Starting the Recovery

**Hello again readers! This is another update! As expected, there was a lot of controversy about the last chapter, and I expected that. Some of you liked the turn it took, others were... understandably sickened. That was hopefully the last time something like that will happen, and this is the start of the long road to recovery for Ruby. This is a change of pace and introduces new-ish characters. Hopefully I got their personalities down. **

**Anyway, here we go with another chapter!**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

Roman Torchwick was a mite befuddled, as he would never admit to being confused. A few hours ago he received a call from the Queen, A.K.A. Cinder Fall, to expect Mercury and Emerald at the White Fang warehouse they were currently using, and also that O'Malley DuFresne would be arriving to treat somebody that the afore-mentioned duo were bringing with them. It wasn't an uncommon thing for a patient to be brought in, since they _were_ fighting against the usurper government set up by the Hunters who were really a little too bloodthirsty. What was a little more uncommon was when they smuggled out a defecting Hunter/Huntress that needed treatment. It was only so uncommon because so few made it or actually defected, being annoying spies and all that. The last huntress they got out needed to have her ear treated, and they only managed to save the half of it from the bullet that almost bisected it.

But what was strange about this time was that everything was being kept hush-hush sealed lips. Cinder would normally give at least a few more crumbs of details about what was going on or whom they were bringing in, but this time, not so much. _Just "be there, expect person 'A' and 'B' who are bringing person 'C' to be treated. Oh, and send one of the most ridiculously expensive and hardest to get airships to pick up persons 'A' and 'B' from one of the most secure facilities on Remnant." Not even a "how are you". Rude._ Not that Roman would mention that out loud when she was in hearing range of course. She might be forgiving at times and better than the monarchs of old, but he still didn't want to run the risk of getting charred.

However, one doesn't survive in his lines of work without reading between the lines and picking up unsaid things.

_If Emerald and Mercury are bringing someone themselves,_ Roman thought out, _then it must be an important person they have. And if they need the stealth airship, which I want back_ undamaged, _then the person they have's disappearance will cause Beacon to go into an uproar, so they need to be untracked to make it back. If Doc's coming, then the person they have is in serious condition. So the person is another hunter that's probably been tortured, and depending on what he did, now wants out. _

_That just leaves the question of who the person is. _

DuFresne arrived about half an hour ago and Roman was just now getting around to talking to the man. DuFresne had immediately gone to the medical room that they had in the warehouse they were using. The medical room held a smattering of tools and medicine that he was able to smuggle from his real job in the Vale hospital, along with several of those uncomfortable medical beds. _How do they make the sheets so scratchy anyway? I should find out. _DuFresne was a major help to both the White Fang and the Ember Rebels because he was one of the few doctors that they had that willingly joined them. Once he was there he instructed everybody to let him know when the arrivals were… going to arrive.

And of course Roman was going to barge in unannounced. _Can't crimp style._

"So Doc, do you have any idea who you're going to subject to your wiles?" Roman asked loudly as he threw open the doors. A purple and black haired man leaning over a tray in the middle of a bunch of medical beds jumped and tools clattered noisily on the ground.

DuFresne sighed as he realized who exactly it was, not that he should have expected anyone else. "I told you to stop calling me that. My name is O'Malley, or even DuFresne. Not Doc," he said.

"Yea, O'Malley DuFresne is too hard to say in a conversation son. You're Doc and it's gonna' stick." Roman said, hiding a smirk. _I love riling people up, _he thought as he heard Doc mutter 'I'm older than you'. "But in any case, you still haven't answered my question."

"I have no clue, I'm in the dark as much as you are." He admitted. "All I know is that it's a huntress that's been in their torture cells for most of the day."

Roman winced, knowing _exactly_ how '_merciful_' they can be to a prisoner. Neo was one such example. _Poor girl, and that was only for a couple of hours._ "Ah, that'll do it," Roman said out loud. "But hey, if Doc can't fix it, then it's been dead for days. And even then you can make the body look pretty enough."

DuFresne stared at Roman with a blank expression. "You know what… I fuckin' hate you."

"Yep, everybody loves me!" Roman grabbed DuFresne in a one-armed hug and squeezed then swirled around and left, leaving behind a grumbling Doc. Roman smirked. _I have to get my kicks somehow. _

_So Doc doesn't know who it is either, _Roman continued on with his deductions. _Cinder didn't tell him anything either, or nothing worth mentioning. _He walked away towards the small loading dock where a bunch of White Fang Faunus were milling about. After their last "raid" at the docks ended in failure, no thanks to the traitor Blake Belladonna and the rest of the first year Team RWBY, they really didn't have any more major targets. Tukson, before he turncoated and subsequently taken care of, had nothing to give them in the way of _real_ information (and it was now suspected he hadn't for a while), and the Vytal Tournament wasn't here just yet. So there was literally nothing for them to do.

A couple Faunus were sparring with each other, if it could be called that. It was more of submission wrestling with a small crowd around them, cheering the two on. Roman shook his head but let it continue. _If people want to stop seeing them as animals, then they should stop acting like them. Although technically they are part animal, so… yea, don't know where I was going with that. Continuing on._

He was drawn out of his sorta-thoughts when there was a commotion outside of the warehouse. He quirked an eyebrow and started walking towards the sound, Melodic Cudgel making a clacking sound when it hit the ground, with a softer pair of footsteps following slightly behind him. He smirked knowing exactly whom it was that was following. "It seems our surprise guests have arrived," he said aloud.

There was no verbal response, but Roman knew exactly what she was thinking. _'Of course, what else could it be?'_

"Then let's go see who they brought, shall we?" Roman gave a side smile as he glanced at his pink/white and brown haired companion. The duo walked out and saw a touched down Bullhead that Roman noticed was littered with Dust round holes. _Okay, it's not as bad as I thought it would be,_ he admitted to himself, _no anti-aircraft rounds at least._

He saw his two targets by their grey and green hair. "So what have you two lovebirds brought us today?" He asked as he came up to them.

Emerald scoffed, "As if."

Roman picked up on the brief, ineloquent denial. "Oh, what's this? No snappy comeback? Either you're finally admitting that you like each other, or you've seen something that's shocking; and if it's shocking to you, then that's bad for normal people." Roman said, becoming slightly serious at the end.

"Yes to the shocking part and no to the liking him," she pointed at Mercury. "You'll understand why. Mercury, give him the data. Neo, let's have a little girl time over an Atlas Whiskey. Maybe I can drink away the stuff I've seen today." Neo and Emerald left arm in arm into the warehouse, Neo smirking and her eyes changing in amusement, leaving Roman and Mercury behind.

"That bad that she needed to break out the Atlas stuff?" Roman asked "The good, _expensive_ stuff?"

"You don't know the half of it," Mercury admitted, then turned to where a group was wheeling out the person they brought on a medical bed.

"Oh, that's the person?" Roman asked as he went closer. Then he stopped. His blood ran cold.

He recognized that face.

It was the same facial structure, the same eye shape, the same hair. He looked at the bag they were carrying along side it and grabbed it, ignoring the protest from the Faunus. He opened it and saw the clothes inside. Although the clothes might be different colors they were still the same memorable design.

Roman grabbed Mercury and spun him around. "What the _fuck_ is she doing here?!" Roman hissed as he tossed the bag back.

"She's the one that we needed to get out," Mercury said.

"_We're_ the one's that need to get out," Roman whisper-shouted, "while she's still asleep. She'll kill us all if she has the chance. In fact, let's kill her right now." He fingered the false trigger in his cane as he marched towards her.

Mercury grabbed him and spun him around. "She's unconscious, and anyway she was the one that they were torturing."

Roman blinked, not expecting that. "They were torturing her? Ebony?"

"Yep. Except she's more red now," Mercury said as a couple of people wheeled her into the warehouse. Roman almost wanted to stop them from making that mistake.

"Okay, so let me get this straight. The person you rescued is the one that the Hunters are claiming to be their rising star, the one that made headlines by being the youngest accepted into Beacon in fifty years and promptly scaring all the others in the school with her ability, the one that killed two squads in front of me and almost got me twice… is the one they were torturing? That must have been one big fuck-up she did."

"It was, but it's not her fault…" Mercury had to swallow down some bile and handed Roman a data chip. "This has everything we know about her. Ruby Rose, not the Black Reaper. Interrogation videos, fighting clips, everything, which still isn't a lot."

"That had better not be everything you got, because we already have most of this about Eb here."

Mercury rolled his eyes, "No, we just forgot everything in our haste to rescue her." He pulled out another chip and waved it in Roman's face. "This is one that has everything you need to know. Cinder will get another and if you swipe and attempt to access that one it'll fry itself and she'll be annoyed with you… well, more so than normal."

Roman grumbled and grabbed the chip. "Fine. But you better not be making a mistake because having her here could ruin everything."

"We're not. She's not the same person. You'll see," he said, gesturing to the chip.

Roman scowled and walked into the base following the entourage. He fiddled with the chip he'd been given but noticed that most of the White Fang members had stopped and stared where Ebony had passed. 'What!?" He shouted at them, startling most of them, "This ain't no ice cream social! Shoo! Go!" Roman shooed them away, flapping his arms about until everybody pretended they were doing something.

He sighed. "This is just going to be one of those days isn't it? Actually, I should change that to it's going to be one of those weeks. Oum damnit." He looked down at the chip in his hand again. "Fuck it. I'm not going to get any sleep tonight anyway."

He headed towards the room he was using as his own and plopped down into the chair at the desk. He hated being here, but there was little he could do about it right now. A five star hotel would be nice, preferably where he could have somebody else pay for all his expenses. But alas, he was stuck here, and while it was a relatively nice warehouse, it was still a warehouse. _At least the bed is nice. _

He pulled out his scroll and slid in the data chip. Several new files appeared. 'Ruby or Rose?' 'Dust Accident &amp; Grimm Pit' 'Interrogation' 'Torture'.

Roman decided on the first file. It was a text file by Mercury and Emerald.

* * *

_This is just a quick thing we're writing to provide some background to what's on this file. Today there was some sort of incident where Ruby Rose (who goes by the name Rose, rather than Ruby [see: Black Reaper]) activated a unique combination of Red and Black Dust in the form of a crystal, made by Weiss Schnee. When it activated with the use of White Dust, there was a bright flash and Rose had changed to what we see now. **This person, which we'll call Ruby to differentiate the two, told a different story of how she activated the Dust crystal and acted quite the opposite of how Rose acts. **_

**_The next file is video and audio recordings of the events that followed. Rose's Grimm suddenly broke their bonds and became wild, and when Team RWBY was called, instead of re-capturing them, Ruby started killing the Grimm._**_ **She killed most of them by herself (all being above class 'B' Grimm) and only called upon her team when the Class A+ Nevermore broke free to subdue it so she could finish it off, displaying superior team coordination than Rose. **_

_The next file is the interrogation done by Glynda Goodwitch. The interrogation and the subsequent torture sessions confirmed that Ruby and Rose are two different people. Em had to walk way and empty her stomach from the contents, and frankly I want to go join her. We've downloaded most of the sessions but haven't watched them… frankly nobody should. The only ones that should be watched (if at all) are when Yang Xiao Long, Blake Belladonna, and Weiss Schnee are in them since they are the ones that reveal any relevant information…_

**_I'm back. We've decided that we're going to rescue Ruby and see if she would help us with our cause. She might need some convincing but it's a high possibility. This chip just contains files relevant to Ruby Rose and the Black Reaper in the event that the Hunters retrieve this. Let's hope we're not too late._**

* * *

The file ended there and Roman sat back, thinking_. So, Emerald and Mercury actually think this is a different person? How ridiculous is that? People just don't change their personality on a dime. And if they do, then they're a good actor. What kind of B.S. did they come up with to explain this?_ He started the next file and it was a video recording from inside the Dust workshop at Beacon. At the moment it was only the white haired girl there, Weiss Schnee, working at a table.

Then the door opened and Rose strode in, her black cloak fluttering behind her. Then came Belladonna and Xiao Long behind her.

_"Well Schnee, what did you make that is so important?" _Roman shivered at Ebony's tone, more dangerous than Cinder's on a good day, and that's through a recording.

_"Mistress, I made a new Dust Crystal that you might like to use…"_

* * *

A few hours later, and a stiff drink or three, Roman was almost as pale as when he found Neo again. The sight of Ebon… no Ruby, inside that damn torture chamber brought back memories of seeing Neo in the aftermath of _that_ night. _Dear Oum, they were right. She has changed. The crystal must have done something completely overpowering to accomplish something like this, to give her severe amnesia or false memories, or whatever. But she isn't the same. _

His mind started running at 55 miles an hour and he was still hitting the gas. _Now do we keep her this way? She clearly knows how to use that oversized gardening tool effectively, but will she still want to be a huntress after this? The protégé of Beacon? Or will she go the way of her birth mother and fight them for as long as she lives? If she doesn't, maybe there is a way that we can keep her from regaining her memories and keep her altered ones. _

_But are they even altered? What if they aren't and she's that good of an actor? What's interesting is that there are parallels to her real life in her amnesia memories. We both met at that Dust store, but she was there to kill the owner, not stop me from robbing it. Besides, her story paints a rather rosy picture… goddamn pun… about her life. No terrorizing hunters, just the Grimm they fight and strangely enough the White Fang. Some things are still the same though. Is she truly different? _

_So where does that leave us?_ That was the major question Torchwick had. Deciding that he was going to go in circles he got up and went to check up on their VIP.

The whole base seemed on edge now. Since this was supposed to be a well-guarded secret, everybody knew about who had been brought in. It was as if they were waiting for the Red Dust keg to go off under them, which had merit, considering the amount of Dust and ammunition they had stored in here. _Really need to move some of this shit out of here, _Roman thought, _before we get busted_.

The trip to the medical ward was short and Roman entered, this time with a lot less bang. Believe it or not, he did have some sort of courtesy. "Well Doc? How is our fearsome predator?" He asked after DuFresne had spotted him after being hunched over Ruby for a while.

"You want the bad news or the other bad news?" DuFresne asked, looking tired.

"The bad news with a positive spin on it."

"Well, for starters I need to use alternative medicine since there is so much White Dust in her system from repeated crude healing. Any more and she could have become dependent on it. Her larynx has been strained severely, probably from screaming, but it should heal in time. Some of her lacerations are deep and need a few stitches, but most are just surface wounds and are easily healed. However due to the vast majority of the cuts she's suffering from moderate blood loss, so iron pills will be needed.

"Now for the more severe stuff. Due to the hallucinogens and other pain drugs that are in her system, they are affecting her Aura and preventing her from recovering faster. I'll have to deal with the injuries and flush out her system before her Aura can take over and help. My Semblance can only do so much. Furthermore, there are several broken and/or fractured ribs and other bones, blunt head trauma, burns… There is also severe damage around her… womanly parts, due to rape." DuFresne looked disgusted and Roman mirrored him.

"Will she get pregnant?" He asked warily.

DuFresne mercifully shook his head. "No, at least that is easily remedied."

"So other than that she's fine?" Roman asked, the joke sounding weak even to him.

DuFresne glared at him. "That's only the first bad news. The second is completely mental. I saw some of those 'sessions' and what Miss Rose was like after the Dust incident. Thanks Mercury." He said sarcastically to the air. "The first thing is figuring out what sort of effects the Red-Black crystal had on her."

"And since we don't have any Black Dust with us to even give us a starting point, then that could be a problem," Roman said.

"That, and since she has all the other Dust and drugs still in her, the last bit of the Red-Black might as well be lost," DuFresne finished, leaving the line of thought unfinished.

"But there's more," Roman said, picking up on that.

DuFresne nodded and continued. "Since this Rose is far more innocent than the previous one, the mental trauma she went through could set back recovery by months, if she will recover at all. Her body can physically heal, but her mind may never. I have no sure fire way of seeing what affect all this had on her. I won't lie, she will break down at some point, probably multiple times, and one will happen right after waking up. I'd like to have as little people in contact with her as possible. That number may grow later, but that's later."

"Understandable." Roman said. It took me nearly a week to even get close to Neo afterwards, let alone touch her. "And what about her crazy, _'everything's different'_ amnesia thing? Is she faking or not?"

"I won't be able to tell until she's awake," DuFresne said. "Only after her brain has basically re-booted itself will I be able to see what's wrong with her and determine if her memories have been altered. Plus just talking to her should help as well."

"See wh-?" Roman cut himself off as he remembered. "Right, Semblance. Carry on."

"Right. Anyway, we're lucky she's asleep right now because I can't use anything to keep her that way without adverse effects. It'll be quite a while before I can heal her up a bit before I'm comfortable leaving her alone."

"Yeaaaah, not going to happen Doc," Roman decided. "She may be all sweet and naïve right now, but I'm willing to bet that when she remembers everything she'll go right back to her murderous self. Two guards inside and outside, and her gardening tool far away from her."

"Only two outside," DuFresne countered, "But they keep a two way radio in here on."

"Fine." Roman knew the man enough when he got this way that he wouldn't accept any more compromise. "But call them in if anything goes wrong." He said.

"Of course," DuFresne said.

Roman looked over at the sleeping teen. _It's funny how one so young could be so many things. Killer or savior? Child or menace? Who are you Rose? _He shook his head and left the med-ward, pondering when things had become even crazier than they were before.

* * *

She was in darkness. There was no sound, no feeling, no senses. She couldn't tell anything apart, if there was anything to do so with.

After time, images floated across her mind. Flashes of sight. Red eyes, pawing hands, shining metal of blades.

Then came the pain. Hot, cold, sharp, cutting, burning, freezing, tearing, every type of pain that she could think of, and some that she could not describe.

After some innumerable time, the pain lessened to a dull throb to her head, her chest, and her… core. When this happened, she became more aware of what was around her. It was quiet except for a constant beeping sound and a couple humming machines somewhere. She could feel that she was lying on some sort of bed and a sheet was over her, which was slightly scratchy.

She tried opening her eyes, but it felt as if Yang had taped them shut like that one time as a joke. However, it was just because her body refused to respond to her commands. She was tired, and sore, and hungry, and exhausted, but somehow she couldn't remember why.

After numerous times, she finally managed to crack one of her silver eyes open. What she saw was unfamiliar to her. She spent a minute trying to figure out what she was staring at before deciding that she was looking at a ceiling. A dirty ceiling with rafters and beams that provided support for a roof.

_And where is this roof? _She asked herself, opening her other eye. She looked down and saw that there was another medical bed across from her. _So I'm in the hospital… but this doesn't exactly look like a hospital. Where am I?_

A rustling sound caused her to try and look over to her right, but her head barely moved an inch without her head spinning. However, she was able to see a man with purple hair with black streaks in it come towards her and stop a fair distance away.

"Ah, good to see you awake finally," the man said, in a pleasant voice. "Are you thirsty? I can get you some water?"

_I am actually thirsty. That sounds nice._ She tried to say yes but when she opened her mouth all that came out was a rasping sound and she started coughing weakly, her chest flaming in protest.

"Okay, I'll get you some water. Just lie there and rest." The man left her field of view and she closed her eyes again, trying to regain her breath, wondering why it hurt to breath. She looked down and saw that there was a sheet covering her body, preventing her from seeing what was wrong. The man came back and distracted her with a glass with a straw in it. "Here you go. I'm going to have to hold it while you drink though."

_I don't think I could hold it anyway_, she thought as she nodded slowly. The straw was placed between her lips and she started drinking the water slowly. It was a relief when she felt the cool liquid go down her throat even if it tasted a bit metallic. She stopped after she had her fill and the man took the glass away.

"Now, would you like me to go away or would you like me to discuss some things?" He asked.

She was tired, but she wanted answers. "Stay," she rasped out, shocking herself at the harshness of her voice.

"Okay," the man pulled up a chair and sat down and reached over for something. Ruby suddenly felt herself being moved up as the bed slightly elevated, leaving her halfway between lying down and sitting upright. There was silence for a moment before the man cleared his throat. "So, my name is Doctor O'Malley DuFresne and I've been healing you for over a day. I've managed to patch most of you up and flush out the majority of the drugs in your system, but you'll still need time to heal your throat and ribs, so take it easy for the next week or so. The good news is that your Aura has recovered a bit and is helping out with your healing, but it's still low. I want you to get two more days of bed rest before doing small exercises and walking again, and at three weeks before you're back to fighting shape."

She was really confused. _What is all this he's telling me? Why do I need to rest that much? What happened to me? _She tried to think but when she tried too hard, something caused her to violently retreat from her mind. Frankly it scared her. "Why?" She asked.

"What?" O'Malley asked.

"Why… need… rest?" She gasped out.

She didn't like how O'Malley's eyes darkened and he took a pensive look. It felt as if he was x-raying her, seeing inside of her. He blinked and the moment passed. "I was afraid of this. You've blocked out your memories of the incident."

"Incident?" She asked, her voice coming back to her after use and the water.

O'Malley seemed to think about something for a moment before he said, "Do you want to remember? It is the exact opposite of pleasant and considering you've blocked it in the first place you probably don't want to remember."

She opened her mouth to argue but then she thought. _Why would I block it out in the first place? How could it be so bad that I did something like that? Is that the reason why I'm so weak right now? Something in my memory? I want to know… but I'm scared of what I'll find…_

She nodded. "I want… to remember." She said.

O'Malley sighed but started. "You were in Beacon and were affected by an untested Red-Black Dust crystal which either caused you to have sever amnesia or completely altered your memories entirely. After an incident with some Grimm, you were… tortured in all manors because the hunters didn't believe you were the real Ruby Rose and wanted to find out what happened."

At that last sentence, it all came back to her. The questions, the pain, the _violation_, caused by monsters wearing her classmates' faces… and her teams' as well. Yang, Blake, and Weiss were all monsters. There were others, faceless shadows that did unspeakable things to her. Sick things. If she weren't so weak and had nothing else in her stomach she would have thrown up.

Instead all she could do was whimper and close her eyes, not even trying to keep the tears in. She felt filthy, disgusting, violated. Everything about her had been destroyed and mutilated. Her friends didn't exist here. Only strangers and monsters. She was all alone, broken and left a shell of who she was. She tried to push away the feelings and the memories, but she already did that before and it wouldn't work a second time.

Innocence lost. Her simple soul shattered.

Filthy. Tainted. Ruined. Disgusting. Weak. Helpless.

This is what it feels like to be Ruby Rose right now.

* * *

O'Malley stared at the sight of the broken girl in front of her, crying her eyes out. He wanted to help, but there was nothing he could do at the moment. She needed to let it go right now and get over it by herself. Later however was when he could help her recovery.

Physically she was where he expected her to be. Her body was healing but there were still many cuts that still needed bandages on them. Her ribs would take the second longest to recover, but lots of rest and baby steps would see them healed.

Mentally, she was a dark labyrinth. When she woke up, the shroud covering her mind was all encompassing, save for a few bright spots. Now though, there was less shadow, but it had turned into a storm. The chaotic thoughts going through her head needed to settle down a bit before anything else could continue.

Eventually, the small girl tired herself out and she started sleeping fitfully, tear streaks going down her still bruised cheeks. _Poor girl,_ he thought as he got up and went to check on her bandages. There were a few that he needed to change, and one that didn't need a bandage anymore, which was slightly good news. Her Aura was still in the red, but it was in the middle rather than just _gone_ previously. Once her Aura was at least out of the red her healing should increase exponentially, but that would take a few days.

O'Malley was hopeful for Ruby's recovery, but the mental issues would be the biggest ones out of them. And that was the sticky situation there. He knew that the base would be tense having her here since she had made the headlines when she got into Beacon and was a high potential target, being the daughter of a council member and her entire family, excluding her half-sister for the moment, were 'S' class hunters and huntresses.

_Hopefully Queen could keep things together a little longer. _

"So she's awake finally," came that annoying voice. _And Torchwick doesn't screw up something,_ O'Malley amended as he exited out of the Med-ward.

"Yes, she is, and if you excuse me, I need to get some sleep. Just because she's got some rest doesn't mean I've gotten any." He replied a little testily. Roman just grates on the nerves sometimes.

"You can stand another five minutes," the orange haired man said. "Just two questions: one, how is she?"

"Her body's healing as predicted. She's still sore and in pain, with her ribs and vocal cords still needing rest. Many of her cuts are better. Mentally is uncertain as she broke down when she remembered what happened to her."

"Which brings me to question number two: is she going to be a problem later when her mind heals?" Roman asked.

"Uncertain. Her mind is a jumble and is slowly, and I mean slowly coming back together, but it is still unknown if her memories are either blocked or gone entirely. Now I answered your two questions. Is there anything else?"

"Nope, you did just fine and won the grand prize of being able to take a nap," Roman gestured dramatically, letting O'Malley pass by. O'Malley didn't give a response as he passed by to his own room and, once there, just collapsed onto the bed inside. He was just about to go to sleep when he got a call on his scroll.

"What?" He asked grumpily.

_"This is… Emerals, no, Emerald. Can you come to… my room with some hangover stuff for me and Neo?"_ Came the slurred voice from the other end.

"Yes_ssss_," O'Malley hissed and hung up, putting his hand on his head in exasperation. "Oum fucking damnit."

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**I'm no doctor or even a medic so I'm just trying to go with what sounds right. How'd you like this chapter and the alternate Roman? This is the first of a couple of 'slow' chapters, but not really. There will be more recovery in the next chapter, with the first meeting of Ruby and Roman, also including the Hunter's POV. **

**Anyway, next up I'm going to update by RWBY/Harry Potter story, so keep an eye out for that as well. **

**Remember to R.R.F.F.!**

**-OrangeGalen**


	8. On the Wanted List

**Why hello. It's time for another update! The action has died down a bit, but it will return in time, don't worry. The next few chapters are more character and emotionally driven, so that's that. Also this chapter has little time skips in it, but minor ones. **

**Anyway, thank you once again for sticking with this story, and for the new ones just joining, thank you for being brave enough to give this a shot. **

**Now then, on with the story. **

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

* * *

**Edit: 11/12/15. Small changes and touch up. **

* * *

Rejected titles: Remnants Most Wanted

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

_(One day + a few hours previously…) _

"Okay, what was with the alarms? What sort of emergency did they have that they needed to disrupt a relatively nice evening by gathering us all together?" Weiss Schnee griped as she stomped down the hallways to the auditorium for a school assembly that was announced about ten minutes ago. There were many whispering as to why they were called. All knew that it had something to do with the alarms that went off about a half-hour previously. Some claimed that there was a sabotage attempt to blow up the school, others claimed that it was a raid that was fought off. That one was the most accurate since a couple of students had attempted to prevent a different type of Bullhead from escaping at the Beacon cliffs.

"I think the emergency has already passed and this is just them giving out information," Blake Belladonna said along side her teammate.

"Whatever. Let's just get this over with so we can sleep," Yang Xiao Long grumbled, her eyes a dull red, showing that she was tired. Considering that it was about 11:00 at night, a lot of the future Hunters and Huntresses of Remnant felt the same way, considering the amount of grumbling and moaning over the whispering gossip.

The remnants of Team RWBY pushed open the doors and entered the auditorium, the room looking a lot like orientation day, except without most of the injuries. The students, freshmen through seniors, were all gathered with a few team stragglers. Yang looked around and saw a few familiar faces: CRDL, JNPR, and the remaining half of CFVY, which was just Coco and Fox. Yang smirked in remembrance at the ruckus caused when Velvet and Yatsusashasomethingorother left Beacon, thinking they could just walk away. _I hope Velvet kept the top half of her ear as a memorabilia. Maybe she made it into a necklace. Or a snack in a red _Velvet_ cake. Would make a nice one,_ Yang thought.

"So what's the big idea about all this? I'm hearing so many things right now," Jaune Arc said as he wandered over closer.

"Your guess is as good as ours," Belladonna answered.

"Then what are your guesses then?" He persisted.

"How about we look at things logically," Schnee said. "Something happened last night, and there was definitely an airship and people that were not supposed to be here. That either means there was a really botched attack or a spy getting out."

"Makes sense," Jaune agreed. "Do you notice anyone missing?"

They all looked around and really didn't notice anyone gone. "Nope," Yang said, "Now why don't you take care of your pet? I'm sure she misses her master," she jabbed verbally.

"Meh, she's missed be for seventeen years, a few minutes here and there won't make that much of a difference," Jaune replied nonchalantly. "Besides, who wouldn't miss me after they've had me in bed? Well, for one they wouldn't leave for a while…" He trailed off as he stared coolly at Myrtenaster, which had appeared in a blur under his chin.

"Could you take your uncouth tongue away from us?" Weiss said.

"As if mine's any different for your teams', hypocrite." Jaune said as his gaze turned to Weiss. "Of course, you'd understand better than anyone here, wouldn't you Ice Slave? Your Mistress always loved giving you a tongue lashing." He then grabbed the blade and moved it away from him, his Aura completely protecting his hand from the rapier's edge.

"Don't you have any other thing to do? Preferably away from us?" Weiss snarled as she sheathed her weapon. She was still annoyed with the Arc heir since the first day.

"Yes, I could be skull-fucking the brains out of Pyrrha right now, but the Commander called us here, and I'd rather not find myself in detention with Goodwitch again." Everyone in earshot shivered at the memory of hell those detentions were. Some were still recovering in the med-ward.

"Eh, ask if you could interrogate Rose the next time, that is if she's still around then," Xiao Long replied. "That'll be a lot more fun than the Goodwitch treatment."

"Agreed since my team hasn't had a turn yet. Although by now all we'll get are the leftover scraps."

"Scraps of what?" came a bubbly voice. They turned as saw Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren, and Pyrrha Nikos come up to them.

Nora's sleeveless top was white with the heart cut out in the middle to show off her womanly accessories, but not enough to be indecent. The detached black sleeves ended at her pink fingerless gloves. Her black vest went down to her waist with her blue and red odd layers showing. Her armor support was non-deployed, just being only the frame right now. Her pink skirt went only halfway to her thighs, showing off quite a bit of leg, which led down to her black and pink and black shoes.

Pyrrha had on her gold circlet headpiece as always, with the black gemstones hanging from it on their chains. She also had on her gorget around her neck, and her black bracelet on her upper-left arm. Her two layer top was on, the first being a light-brown strapless top vertically divided with some black patterns, the under layer leather being a bronze-gold color V-neck that melded with the top layer. She also had brown cut-off sleeves and an armor plate on her left forearm. Her dark brown miniskirt had her red ankle-length drapery wrapped around it that was stained brown from blood that just would not come out. Around her waist was the plate with her symbol on it. Furthermore, she had on her armor plates protecting her long legs, which led to her brown and dark red boots.

Ren had his black hair tied back in his ponytail, the pink streak prominent on the left side of his hair, the same color as his eyes. His dark green, almost black tailcoat that buttoned diagonally was red on the inside, with pure black and gold trimming. His sleeves ended in wide cuffs that were a darker shade of pink, showing off a bit of his black long sleeved shirt underneath. His pants were a tan color that went down to his black shoes.

"Of Rose, if she's still alive," Jaune answered the hammer wielder's question.

"Even though she's not the Rose we knew, I know she's still alive for now," Yang answered. "She's not going to die that easily."

"True," Weiss answered.

A clearing of a throat in a microphone caused all the talking to cease inside. The two teams turned and saw Goodwitch and Ozpin standing on the stage, with the Commander talking into the mic. "_Good evening. You may be wondering why you were assembled at such a late hour, and concerned about the many rumors that have been circulating around. I am here to inform you that a few hours ago two spies inside Beacon triggered the safety alarms when they tried to access secure information. They were perused but escaped before we could apprehend them. Thankfully no major information was stolen before they were found._

"_However this incident is just one of many growing in our society, the problems that are cultivating in the shadows,_" he continued. "_The actions of those who dispute our role in the future are growing bolder and our purpose becomes ever more needed. We are the future of this world and those that stand against it must fall. As such, I will be ensuring that harsher measures are taken to those affiliated or sympathetic to groups such as the White Fang or the Ember Rebels. They have been allotted too much freedom as of late and are now surviving on borrowed time. New missions will be assigned to all teams this next week and we will be hunting down these traitors to our world. For the rest of the night, get some rest. Tomorrow we will begin._"

Ozpin stepped away from the microphone to cheers and applause. Even team JNPR and WBY were glad at the change.

"It's about damn time," Weiss commented. "We've been letting those filthy degenerates loose for too long. It's time to put them down."

"The White Fang is overextending its reach, especially when they tried to jack that shipment of Dust from your father's corporation," Blake added, no hint of regret for the declared fate of her former comrades.

"And those damn rebels keep popping up everywhere," Jaune pitched in. "I just hope I could find my remaining sisters so I could purge the Arc line of its treason once and for all."

"You're not the only one who wishes they could be rid of their sister," Yang said. She was distracted when Weiss' scroll went off with a text message. The Heiress pulled it out and read what is said, then turned to the rest of the team and showed them it.

_Weiss Schnee, bring your team up to the Commander's office as soon as you get this message. –Goodwitch. _

"Well, let's get moving then," Yang said following Weiss.

"Moving where?" Jaune asked.

"This is one of those moments where you don't need to know," Blake responded before turning her back on him and also following.

After leaving, the corridors were empty so they had a clear path to the Commander's office, and made good time. Once they stepped out of the elevator however and entered the Commander's office, Ozpin was already waiting for them with a cup of fresh steaming tea, the clock tower ticking around them.

"How. _How_?" Weiss questioned deadpanning.

"It's all in the timing," Ozpin replied cryptically. At this, the three of them realized with whom they were speaking to and kneeled, waiting for him to call them to rise, which he did after a moment. "Since the information I'm about to give you is top secret, I shouldn't have to tell you the consequences of speaking about it. I know you three must not be fully satisfied with the little speech I just gave to the masses," he said.

"It was a bit brief," Blake admitted.

"Indeed. There is a lot more than what meets the eye. There _was_ an incident that happened last night, although the severity of it is greater than what I've let on." He tapped his scroll a couple of times and brought up two pictures, two vaguely familiar faces. "Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black, if those are their real names, entered the Vytal Tournament on the Haven roster. These two were the culprits of the alarm earlier, and apparently spies from the Ember Rebels."

"Spies? Here?" Yang exclaimed.

"How did they get entered in the first place, since Haven is supposed to check its own rosters?" Weiss asked.

"That is something I'll be having words with among other things with the headmistress once I see her. That particular breach aside, they have made off with more data than I said as well."

"Just how much are we talking about, if I may ask?" Blake requested.

"Undetermined at this time," Ozpin replied. "I would expect it would be a lot, considering the time they spent here undetected."

Weiss frowned, remembering something. "M-err, Rose suspected something was off about those two. She didn't fully trust them."

"And how is that different from anybody else?" Yang jabbed.

"More so than everybody else." Weiss amended.

"And speaking of Miss Rose," Ozpin said, bringing their attention back to the present, "apparently those two imposters took pity on her and… 'rescued' her."

"You mean…?" Yang asked, her temper starting to flare.

"Ruby Rose, or this version of her, is now in the hands of the enemy." Ozpin stated.

There was a few moments of silence in which the temperature heated up before Yang blew. "_Fuck_! How the fucking hell could they just waltz in and break her out of this school?! So much for this being the most secure place on Remnant."

In a blink of an eye Ozpin was right in front of her, as if he had flickered and blurred before stopping in front of her, the pummel of his cane forcing her chin up to meet him eye to eye. "Be careful of your tongue, Miss Xiao Long. Your father may be on the council, and your mother an 'S' class Huntress, but _I_ control the council and the hunters. I would not like to explain to Taiyang why his first daughter can't talk anymore. Or why she may have simply… vanished." The words were casual, aside from the blatant threat, but the tone caused the atmosphere to chill dramatically. In a rare moment, Yang's eyes changed back to their original lilac, fear driving the anger away if only for a moment.

Ozpin turned away, taking his cane away and walked back to his desk. Yang's eyes recovered and changed back to red. "In any event, I'll eventually have to tell him that one of his daughters has been captured after a Dust accident affected the person known as Ruby Rose."

"Why do you say it that way?" Blake asked. "You make it sound as if they are two different people."

"They very well may be," he replied as he sat down, causing them to fall silent. "I've reviewed every recording we have just prior to the accident to when she was broken out. The evidence, however improbable, has led me to believe that an alternate version of Miss Rose was brought here."

"An alternate version?" Weiss questioned, "Like a clone?"

"No, more like a version from an alternate Remnant." More silence.

"That sounds like science fiction." Yang broke it this time.

"We live in a world that has flying airships, highly advanced robots, holograms, and we constantly defy the laws of physics and gravity on a daily basis, yet that sounds implausible?" Blake scathingly pointed out.

"Well it does!"

"Never the less," Ozpin broke in, "I believe that's what happened. The Red-Black Dust crystal must have pulled the alternate Ruby here, and extrapolating on this theory, Rose switched places with her."

"So our 'leader' is stuck in an alternate world?" Yang asked. "Let her rot there then." She muttered.

"Did my warning not get through that hot head of yours?" Ozpin inquired icily, causing Yang to flinch again, though her eyes stayed red this time. "As much as your enmity with your sister, and you know it's biologically true," he stopped Yang before she could protest, "clouds your judgment, Miss Rose is one of the key pieces in a larger game."

He steepled his fingers and said, "I brought you three up here because I have a special task in mind for you. You are going to be hunting down members of both the White Fang and the Ember Rebels to retrieve the alternate Ruby Rose. While you are doing that, on your 'free time' Miss Schnee, you will also be making another Red-Black Dust crystal. Your ultimate goal is to bring back our Ruby Rose. Since one such crystal allowed for this Rose to come here, it's reasonable to assume that another will bring back our Rose, but only if this other Ruby uses it."

WBY nodded in understanding. "And… what about when news gets out she's missing?" Blake asked.

"Missing? I believe that Ruby Rose has been transferred to a different cell in the under basement. We're quite sure we'll get her to talk after she's spent some time there," Ozpin said, a smirk playing on his face, one that was soon mirrored on WBY's faces. "Now then, the last part of my speech stands, get some rest. Tomorrow, you're going hunting."

"Yes sir!" The girls straightened out and stood at attention, then turned around and exited the office.

Ozpin waited until they were gone, then stood up and looked outside the window. _Somewhere out there, there are a group of people trying to tear down everything I've built since the war. I will not let that happen, and Ruby Rose is one of the keys to that. Miss Xiao Long, Belladonna and Schnee have about a week before I contact the Council about this. I don't think they want to fail. Their egos couldn't handle it… _

He took a sip of tea and sat down again. "Besides," he said aloud, "it's only a matter of time."

The clocking sound of the tower continued on.

* * *

_(Three days later)_

O'Malley Frank DuFresne really disliked his job on occasion. He enjoyed his work, helping people; but sometimes those other people, the ones that _aren't_ injured in any way, can get annoying. Always pestering to see if someone is alright even though you've told them multiple times that 'yes, they are all right. No you can't see them right now.'

Of course that doesn't apply to Roman Torchwick.

He's just annoying any time of the day.

"So Doc, has little miss Huntress gone homicidal yet?"

"No." _Unless you count wanting to kill herself,_ he thought sadly.

"Made any death threats against anybody yet?"

"No."

"Tried stealing the scalpels?"

"No. She hasn't changed at all from my last report," O'Malley said, finally responding back with multisyllabic words. "She's still moody, in pain, and showing signs of a growing depression. And just to be clear, you aren't going in there yet to antagonize her."

"Me? Antagonize someone?" Roman said, faking being surprised.

"Yes, it's your second favorite past time, aside from petty theft," came a second voice, one that was a slightly welcome relief for O'Malley.

Roman and O'Malley turned and saw Emerald and Neo come up to them; Neo had her umbrella open resting on her shoulder and her classic small smile. "Hey, first off, it's grand theft, alright? Second, I don't antagonize people for no reason." He pointedly ignored the snort that came from… someone. "I'm just trying to make sure that she is who she says she is, Ruby Rose, not Ebony."

"If you had been paying attention to what I've been saying, there's no way that she is the Rose from before," O'Malley said.

"Yeah, well a lot of our contacts and supporters are starting to drop off the face of Remnant, thanks to this new 'cleansing operation' Ozpin has declared. I just want to make sure Ebony, or Rose, Ruby, whoever the hell she is isn't actually a spy. Besides, we only clarified that she was different after the Dust thingy. She could very well revert at a trigger word and expose us all."

Neo came up behind him and pulled him down to her eye level. After a moment Roman sighed and rolled his eyes, understanding whatever Neo was trying to get across. "It's not paranoia if you know someone's out to get you." He said. Another moment later, "Yes, I know that she's been under supervision and almost physically able to not move." He was still agitated but sounded defeated this time. Neo placed her hand on her hip and tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "Okay! Fine! She's not Ebony, happy Neo? Is that what you wanted to hear?" Roman said, exasperated.

Apparently she was because she smiled again. "I swear woman…" Roman grumbled. Emerald and O'Malley hid their smirks, enjoying the silent takedown the diminutive woman did on Roman.

"Really though, how is she?" Emerald asked, restarting the conversation, or rather starting it without insults.

"She's physically stable. Her Aura's recovering a tad slower but it's fine. Some of the cuts still need a little more time, but her ribs are going to be the longest to recover. However, she's still mentally unstable, and not in that way," he cut off Roman's sure to be sarcastic remark. "She won't eat much so that's slowing down recovery, and she's still in trauma and sliding into depression. Until she breaks out of the funk she's in, I can't tell if her story's true. There isn't much I can do about that."

O'Malley looked over and saw that Neo was pointing to herself and Emerald. He frowned for a moment, trying to understand what she was trying to tell him before she gestured back the way the medical wing was. "Oh, uhh…" he thought about it. "Okay, but only briefly, and you leave when she wants you to."

"Oh come on…!"

"Nope," O'Malley cut Roman off again. "Even with her altered memories, she knows you as the bad guy. You're not going in until much later."

"Fine. Not as if I wanted to see her anyway," Roman said, pulling out a cigar and lighting it. Nobody bought his indifference. They were all concerned about their guest.

* * *

Ruby had lost count of how long she had stared at the opposite wall. Or had she even bothered to count in the first place? After the first day was spent crying solidly, Ruby had shut down. She still felt the soreness and the pain in her body, but it was numb. She had been numb since… some time ago. The tears had come on and off, but after the tears temporarily stopped, she became numb.

After all, feeling nothing was better than remembering everything.

Oh, she still remembered what happened. The torture, the pain … the rape. But it had been pushed to the back of her mind, and then her mind shut down. She had barely said a single word to the doctor, which was good for her throat he had said, but she knew he had said that just to try and encourage her. She could see the worry in his eyes from the occasional glances.

She barely ate, only taking a couple of bites before putting the plate of food down and resumed her nothingness. Eventually the doctor would come by and take the plate after trying to get her to eat some more.

She was tired. She had no energy to do anything, and no motivation to get herself to do anything. It seemed pointless. Why bother to do anything?

If she had been thinking properly, she may have found it funny, or at least ironic that she's been stuck in the same room more or less for the past three days. As it was, it was sort of a dull afterthought. _I would have gone stir crazy on the second day. Weiss would have loved tha-_

Her mind shut down that line of thought before it led to pain.

Everything having to do with _them_ was shut down before it could germinate in her mind. If she let it, her thoughts would take her back to _that_ time, and the monsters her teammates had-

_Stop it!_ Ruby curled in on herself as much as she could with her injured ribs, trying to not make a sound, trying not to cry again. _Don't think about it. Don't think. Don't feel. Can't go through that again. _A tear came out of her eye, but otherwise she kept it in. Her breathing was haggard, a combination of trying not to sob and breathing with injured ribs.

She just lay there, not thinking, not doing anything except breathing and living, although that last one didn't seem all that appealing anymore. She knew that she needed help, but didn't want it at the same time.

The sun had come and gone multiple times, but she lost count of how many times this had happened. It seemed so normal, so routine, but she looked at it differently. _How could it be the same when everything else is so different?_

Ruby looked down at her body. She was wearing some wrappings and a lose gown to preserve what was left of her modesty. She lifted up the gown and looked at the cuts she had. They were bandaged but there were still hints of red inside the bandages from where her wounds still bled, signifying that they still needed to be healed. Purple and brown marks were scattered on her skin, destroying her natural skin tone.

She saw them and without her bidding, the memories of how she got them came to her forethoughts. She closed her eyes and sobbed again, but the tears changed when pain racked through her chest. _Oh, Oum, my ribs. _Since there was nothing else she could do, she just suffered for a while before the pain died down. Afterwards she looked at her wounds again.

_They're like scars, both on my body and in my mind. They're reminders. I don't want them. I don't want to remember._ Something stirred in her, a sense of desperation, and she slowly pushed herself out of the bed, barely staying upright as her legs collapsed under her, only doing so by grabbing the bed. _I'm weak. Pathetic. Small and helpless. I need to get the scars to go away. _She stood upright and hobbled her way over to the cabinets that she saw the doctor getting supplies out of. It took a minute or two but she made it.

She opened the first one and immediately closed it, seeing that it had all the tools in it, before the flashbacks could start. She shuffled over to the next one. It had more medicine stuff in it, but not what she was looking for. The next one got the results she was looking for. Dust. Specifically White Dust.

All students at Signal were taught the basics of Dust, how it was used, how it can be used, what equipment uses it, etc. Red was fire, Blue and Dark Blue was water and ice, and many others. However, White was the go-to mixer if you wanted to get a different combination or a basic energy source. But White Dust also had a powerful healing element to it. Which was exactly what Ruby was looking for.

She grabbed the vial of White Dust grain and poured some out onto her hand, then used her other hand to peel off one of the bandages; she didn't know which one. With the Dust, she placed her hand over her wound and tried to use her Aura to activate it. It took a long time and was tiring, more so than she could remember. It was harder to find her Aura, but she eventually did and the Dust in her palm started glowing. Ruby could feel it seeping into her skin, trying to find damaged cells and repair them. She felt a little bit of her pain subside and moved her hand away. All that was left of the once red wound was a thin white scar. _Good enough,_ Ruby thought.

She repeated this with two other cuts before she felt a wave of weakness come over her, stronger than others before it. _Uh-oh. Guess I used up too much Aura._ She put the cap back on the vial and placed it back in the cabinet. Then she began the task of returning to her bed, which proved both harder and easier since she had used up a lot of energy and Aura, but her legs had become re-accustomed to walking again.

It took her about the same amount of time to make it back to her bed, where she promptly collapsed on it, breathing a sigh out. She crawled back in and readjusted herself, planning on going to sleep, when the ward's doors opened and the doctor… _O'Mallery? Meh, Doc'll do._ Ruby couldn't bother to remember his name. Too complicated to say if she wanted to strike up a conversation with him.

"Hello there Ruby. How are you feeling?" He asked.

Ruby blinked and said, "Tired." It came out gravely, but better than before.

Doc blinked in surprise. _Probably because I've barely said two words after… _"Do you feel like you can have a guest or two?" He asked, pulling Ruby mercifully out of her thoughts.

Ruby thought about it. _Who wants to see me? Is it someone I know, or rather, knew? Or someone different?_ Ruby shrugged and nodded. "Sure."

Doc turned around and waved two people in. The first one was a slightly familiar face, if only in passing, that she saw at B-… _her_ Beacon. _Emerald, if I remember her name correctly. _She was wearing the same outfit that she normally wore, when not in her Haven uniform, but she now had a symbol on her armband. Ruby could see that it resembled a four-sided sideways diamond with a crown- no, a tiara, in the middle.

The next girl that came in however caused Ruby to freeze up. _Oh no. No no no no no no no. It can't be. If she's here then…_

It was that girl that was with Torchwick. Ruby had only saw her once during the fight with the Paladin before they got away, but Yang said that she fought her on the train and surprisingly lost badly, only saved when another person drove her off before disappearing. With her pink and brown hair, the different colored eyes, and the suit she wore, she was as unmistakable as Ruby wearing her red cloak.

"No. No no no. Why?" She groaned as she flopped back onto her pillow.

"Huh?" Emerald said in confusion. "What's wrong?"

"She works with Torchwick," Ruby said aloud. However, with her tired mind as it was right then, she didn't put two and two together.

"So you do remember then?" Emerald asked, sounding concerned, now confusing Ruby.

"Huh? Remember what?"

"Your life."

"Well, yes, of course I remember…" Ruby closed her eyes as a flashback to her time in the cells came through her mind and ended with those burning red eyes of her not-sister_. 'I love it when you're feisty.' _"No, no, don't want to remember." She whimpered and curled in on herself.

She stiffened when she felt a pair of hands wrap around her body and cracked open an eye to see that girl hugging her. Ruby tried scooting away but with the girl firmly holding her and being thoroughly exhausted, it resulted with nothing accomplished. _Why is she_ hugging _me? I'm her enemy! We are on opposite sides! Why does it feel… nice? This isn't how it's supposed to be. Why is this happening? Bad guys- err, girls, are now the good guys-girls and vice-versa?_

It felt like ages but in reality only a couple of minutes before Ruby somehow calmed down. When the girl pulled away, Ruby found herself wanting more of the hug. It had been the first gentle touch in… Ruby didn't know how long. Yes, it aggravated some of her injuries; she made a note of which ones to heal next, but it was the best thing she felt in a while.

The only problem was that it was from _her_.

"Are you, uhh, okay now?" Came Emerald's voice.

Ruby closed her eyes. _No, no I'm not._ "No… Why are you here?" She asked.

"We wanted to check up on you after we got you out of that hell hole," came the surprising reply.

_'We got you out.' They got me out of… that place?_ "You… got me out of there?"

"Yeah, well, Mercury and I did. Oh! Yeah, I'm Emerald and this lady here is Neopolitan, but she goes by Neo for short." Emerald said, and the other girl, Neo gave a delicate wave.

"I know who you are… knew." _Whatever_. "But why are you working with Torchwick? I thought… you were from Haven?"

Emerald gave a smug smile. "That was just a ruse. We were trying to get information about the Hunters and the Tournament so we could plan our next move." There was a pause before her tone became serious again. "You remember that we were from Haven?"

"Yeah. We never really talked, but I thought you were nice people." _Until I found out you worked for Torchwick. Wait,_ a sudden thought occurred to her_, weren't they the ones that caught Torchwick?_ "Why is Torchwick in jail if you work for him?"

There was an awkward silence before Emerald hesitantly said, "Torchwick's… not in jail. Where did you get that memory?"

"But I _saw_ you and Mercury hand… him…" _Wait. If Torchwick isn't in jail… And she's okay with… Neo's presence, that means she also works with Torchwick. This is still messed up. It isn't my world._ "Never mind." Ruby mumbled weakly, still trying to come to grips with everything that happened.

There was another silence and Ruby was about to doze off when there was a weight settling on her bed. She opened her eyes and saw Neopolitan typing something, then showed Ruby the screen.

_How did you know I worked with Roman?_

Ruby sighed. "You helped Torchwick escape after we destroyed the robot he was in… though I suppose you don't recall that happening," she sighed again.

Neopolitan typed again. _No I don't, but there may be an explanation for that. _

Ruby nodded after reading, understanding where the girl was going. "The Dust crystal," she said. Neo nodded in agreement.

_You figured that you weren't in _your_ Remnant and the Dust crystal had something to do with it. _

"That sums it up." Ruby said. Then she asked, "Why did you hug me?" There was only a slight hint of accusation in her tone, but more curiosity.

_Because I know what you've been through. I went through something similar six years ago. _

Ruby shivered, trying unsuccessfully to block out the beatings and the torture. And the red eyes. Neo's hand rubbing her back returned her to the land of the present. Ruby focused on Neo's eyes and saw the memories haunting her in there. Something clicked and Ruby said, "That's why you don't want to talk?"

Can't_ talk._ Neo corrected. _They cut most of my tongue off after they shredded it. Makes it difficult to eat ice cream. _Neo opened her mouth and Ruby could see that there was only a short stump left of what was once a tongue. Ruby really didn't want to know what she meant by shredded. _Although compared to you I got off lightly. Roman rescued me before anything worse could happen._ She took it back then showed her again. _Anything_ else_ besides what they had already done. So I know what you're going though. If you want anyone to talk to… well, at least I can listen._ Neo giggled at the end, which was a pleasant sound, and her eyes switched colors.

Ruby's lip twitched upwards at the laugh but soon fell back into her melancholy state. "I don't think I can talk about it right now. Its… too soon."

"We get it," Doc said, surprising everyone since this is the first time he'd spoken since coming in. "You still need time to recover… and to sleep," he added, seeing that Ruby's eyes were drooping. "Ladies, if you would leave I need to check up on Miss Rose here."

"Of course. We'll be back to talk some more," Emerald said. "See you later Ruby." The two walked out leaving Ruby and Doc alone.

Ruby decided to not try anymore and closed her eyes, falling asleep swiftly while Doc checked her stats. Her dreams were disturbed, filled with images that would haunt her for the rest of her life.

* * *

_(Three days later)_

Ozpin was not pleased. That's not to say things weren't going well overall; the hunter teams had routed out many White Fang and Ember Rebel sympathizers and cells, filling up the jails and the mortuaries both. Information was being gathered through liberal use of their interrogation methods, gathering up even more scum. It seemed that a clean sweep of Vale was soon to happen.

But Ozpin knew that it wouldn't be that simple. Sure they had caught many of the sympathizers, some of the actual members, and a few middle men or women, but nothing really filling. Nobody that had any real information. The last two were Miss Belladonna and then Mr. Tukson. Unfortunately Mr. Tukson apparently had been found out and subsequently murdered by the White Fang, so that line had been cut.

Another thing that Ozpin was… concerned about was the progress of team RWBY, or WBY, and the lack of it in this case. Without Rose to keep them in line, they wouldn't have much success in the field. They had already killed two leads that they could have used, although that was paired with the fact that they took in the rest of the rebel cell, all twenty of them. Eight now actually, but that was better than zero. Ozpin had called them personally and told them to do better. From their expressions, maybe that order would stick.

But they were still no closer to their goal of finding Rose, or the other variant of her. Ozpin thought he had seen it all, but alternate Remnants? It just goes to show you may live all your life and still find something new. It was a little concerning because it raised a bunch more questions, like how many other Remnants are there, and has anybody else traveled between them before?

Regardless, Ozpin was sure that she was being held close to the body's head.

Or heads rather. While the body may loose a few limbs, like the Grimm Hydra of legend the head will regrow if any other heads remain.

Several names were on the list: Roman Torchwick for one; a thorn in the hunter's side for ages with his heists, now confirmed working with both the White Fang and the Ember Rebels. The recent Dust 'heists' were all planned by him, or at least carried out by him.

Adam Taurus was known and dealt with, but he had been a public menace until Miss Belladonna took care of him. Even so, most of the train squadron had been decimated. They squeezed him of all the information he had and then left him to rot.

Then the three remaining Arc sisters: Boudicca, Morgana, and Jeanne Arc. Even though the Arc's had been with Ozpin almost since the beginning, they still somewhat followed the old ways of the monarchs, if liberally, with the eldest offspring gaining the title of head of house, even if female. In that case, that meant any older siblings other than Jaune needed to be eliminated, since the Arc family held one of the largest accounts until their damn father, Alexander Arc, betrayed him and took all the Lien, sequestering it off somewhere only he, and probably one of the living sisters, knew. Alexander and his wife, plus four of the sisters had already been killed by a party led by Jaune, and they only needed one living. So at least Boudicca needed to be brought in, if only for a short time.

Two more names were recent, Emerald and Mercury, presumed working with Torchwick and the rebels. Both dangerous enough to take on a hunter one on one. Working together they would need a team to take them down. And upon further investigation, it seemed that Mercury was the one to end Tukson. _Perhaps JNPR would be up to the challenge?_

However there were at least two _confirmed_ unknowns. The first was some sort of informant that was high up in society, one that could deliver messages and offer targets to hit to someone else with the rebels. A few had been knocked off the list of suspects but there were a few names that were worrying to Ozpin to even be on the list.

The second unknown was the person actually running the Ember Rebels. No name, no images, barely any information aside from the fact that she uses Dust attacks and her clothing is imbedded with it. Yes, they knew it was a _she_ considering the small glimpses Goodwitch and Rose, _our_ _Rose_, caught after another Torchwick Dust 'heist'. Torchwick had been running White Fang operations, so this mysterious woman could be the one running the Ember Rebels. And since their spy was on a black-ops silence mission, they couldn't get any information yet.

Ozpin was driven out of his thoughts when the door chimed and James Ironwood entered. Now Ironwood was one of the few people Ozpin trusted, well, more than normal. Ironwood had proven himself during the Faunus Revolution and had earned his position as General. He was one of five people that he told his greatest secret to; one of them wasn't with them anymore, which was a massive mistake on Ozpin's part, telling her.

"General, you're right on time," Ozpin greeted.

"Indeed. I'm curious as to why this meeting has been called." Ironwood said.

"You'll find out in a moment. Unfortunately it's not about a pleasant subject."

"When is anything you need to contact the council about pleasant?" He responded with a smirk. Ozpin chuckled as well.

Just then the projector wined and an image formed on the desk. It showed five people in front of them: Adriana Verda, Nikoli Geoluhread, Wale Thayer, Sai-Mein, and lastly Taiyang Xiao Long, the Dragon himself and one of the five Ozpin trusted.

"Greetings," Ozpin said to all of them. "You may be wondering why I called for this meeting. Several days ago Beacon had a disturbance: two spies for the rebels had managed to steal information about troop movements, hunter deployments, Vytal Tournament plans, and other valuable information." There were faces of shock on many of the council members, and a look of concern on Ironwood's. "Unfortunately they managed to escape, but not without one other thing." He paused and took a sip of his tea, just enough time for Nikoli Geoluhread to speak up.

_"And what is this other thing?"_ He asked. Nikoli was a middle-aged man with steel grey hair and wore a black trench coat that covered the rest of him.

"The spies had made off with one Ruby Rose," Ozpin said and waited for the fireworks.

_"My daughter?! They kidnaped my daughter?" _Taiyang bellowed.

_"How could such a travesty occur?"_ Adriana asked.

_"Could they not be stopped before then?"_ Wale was next.

Ozpin let them continue on a moment longer before cutting them off. "Enough." Immediately they all fell silent. "Yes, Ruby Rose was captured that night, but that's just the tip of the mountain. That same day there was an incident where Miss Rose tested out a new Dust crystal and it had… adverse effects on her."

_"Such as,"_ Taiyang growled. For all his flaws he was protective of his family… or at least his legal wife and daughters.

"The crystal caused some sort of disturbance and somehow transported Ruby Rose to another Remnant and left another Ruby Rose was in her place, one that was clueless about our world."

There was silence, not unlike when he broke the news to WBY. Finally Sai-Mein spoke up. Thankfully he was one of the more level headed people on the council. _"Forgive me Commander, but that seems highly… doubtful." _

"Indeed, however her personality changes, along with the way she looked and fought proved otherwise. In addition, we interrogated her which further confirms by hypothesis."

Taiyang narrowed his lilac eyes. _"Interrogated?"_ He growled, a bit of rumbling in his voice.

"Yes, and _then_ put into one of the chambers," Ozpin clarified, placating the man. _While no one, almost no one,_ Ozpin corrected himself, _could best me, it would be an inconvenience to try and fight him._ _Especially if him family is concerned. _Taiyang growled but didn't continue.

_"So now we have an alternate Rose in the hands of the enemy,"_ Wale commented. _"Is this new Rose likely to join them completely?" _

"Highly probable," Ozpin said. "However we need her alive in order to bring back our Ruby Rose. The remaining teammates, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long are tasked with retrieving her. However, we'll need to speed things up."

"So you're offering a bounty on her?" Ironwood spoke up, cutting straight to it.

"Indeed. However, we'll have stipulations. She needs to be alive and able to function. We'll sweeten the deal by offering compensation for expenses, but only if they appeal personally," Ozpin's lips curved upwards in a smirk. Many other council members had the same expression.

_"Very well then. We'll get started on making and distributing the wanted posters," _Adriana said.

"Good, and if you would, Taiyang, a moment of your time." The rest of the council members filed out, leaving the blond haired man on the screen.

_"Is this about the thing?"_ Taiyang asked.

"Yes," Ozpin said. "We need to find Rose before she fully dedicates herself to the enemies' cause. Otherwise all our hard work may be undone."

"Forgive me," Ironwood said, "but how can one girl undo everything that you've done?"

"Ruby Rose has the Semblance of speed. However, with enough training in controlling it, she may even become a match for me." There was stunned silence.

"A match for you?"

_"Yes,"_ Taiyang said. _"Ozpin saw the potential when her Aura and Semblance fully manifested. That's why we've been training her to take over, or at least co-run it with the Commander. She's one of the few that can, or will be able to beat him, with the proper training." _

"Now you see why it's imperative that we get our Rose back," Ozpin said. "She shows no signs of wavering on her course, but this one will be easily swayed by their beliefs, especially if _she_ gets to her."

The silence this time was uncomfortable, full of foreboding.

* * *

_(Two days later)_

Apparently over a week had passed since Ruby had gotten out of the different Beacon. The medical ward had started filling up with wounded Faunus running from some sort of hunter purge, at least according to what Ruby heard from the wounded. It scared her to think about what hunters were like here.

The time spent in her bed allowed her to think more. She still blocked out most of… _that_, but it was getting slightly easier to control herself and to stop feeling. She had figured out completely that she was not in her own Remnant as there were too many changes. She'd talked with Emerald and Neo a couple of times, and Mercury when he showed up once, about what was going on. They had short talks before Ruby would withdraw and Neo, surprisingly, helping her back out.

Ruby when left to her own devices would go over to the cabinet and get some more White Dust grain and heal her remaining major wounds. She still hadn't gotten around to her ribs yet, but most of the others were sealing up, the only flaw was the scars they left behind.

When she was awake and aware, some of the other Faunus engaged her in small talk. She avoided saying that she was a huntress, knowing the hatred for them here, and responded briefly. They didn't talk much after that.

Doc would check her every day and told her that she was improving. Her Aura was recovering and her body was healing unusually fast, probably due to the Dust she was using that she didn't tell him about, and the outlook was that she could be allowed to wander on her own two feet sometime within the next few days, though of course she should take it easy. It would be a little bit longer before she was back to her full strength. Ruby did miss having her sweetheart nearby and was eager for that day.

However, her mental state was still worrying for Doc. He apparently had a Semblance where he could see injuries and other things wrong with the human or Faunus, body, the mind included. He broke the news to her, saying that her mind was still a darkened fog, although the maze it used to be had straightened out a bit. Ruby didn't really understand everything he was saying considering he used a lot of medical complicated words. It basically boiled down to sorting out her feelings and memories, something Ruby was _not_ going to do. At least anytime soon.

What was really concerning for the first couple of days after Emerald and Neo's first visit was realizing that she was inside a White Fang base. Although rationally she knew they weren't the same group she had been fighting previously, she still harbored a little terror over that fact.

_But, _she thought as she lay staring at the boring ceiling, _these are the people fighting against the hunters. And from what I've seen, they're in the right. And the bad guys are now the good guys and vice versa… I just want to go home. I want _my_ Yang, not that red eyed Grimm. I want dad, and Uncle Qrow. _

_No. Don't cry. Hide it. Don't feel it. Turn away and shove it back into my mind. _Ruby fought down the tears and despair and fell into her now familiar void of emotion.

She had almost gone back to sleep when she heard Doc talking, or shouting really, at someone outside. _"Oi, hey, no, I told you already-!" _

Another person responded, one that Ruby had been dreading to hear. _"Too bad Doc, I'm going to talk to her, and _you're_ not going to stop me this time."_ The doors opened and there was a pair of feet that strolled over to her bed.

Ruby sighed and opened her eyes, looking at a familiar white suit, orange hair, green eye and black bowler hat that she had grown to despise. "Well hello there Rose." He said.

Ruby sighed again. "Torchwick."

* * *

Across the city, in a shadowed alley, a cloaked figure hid out of sight, not wanting to be seen. But she could see everybody passing by. The nervous mouse Faunus, the busy worker, and the casual pedestrian, all seen from the watcher. There was an undercurrent of fear. Fear of the Hunters, fear of the Grimm, fear of the White Fang and the Ember Rebels. She could feel it emanating off their Auras. _And that level has only spiked in the past couple of days with this new 'purge' Ozpin has going on. Everyone is frightened of being accused of being a sympathizer and taken off to Oum knows where. Fear has been the driving force of this world for so long. It needs to end. _

She turned her attention to the activity a couple of police officers were doing. They were putting up a new 'wanted' poster of somebody. _So which poor soul is being crucified this time, _she thought, resigned to the fact that she couldn't help everyone.

She took out her scroll and snapped a picture of the poster, then zoomed in on it.

Ruby Rose, Captured by terrorists. Wanted retrieved alive and still able to function. Reward 150,000 Lien. Compensation available for expenses upon request. There was a picture of the girl in question, taken from what looked like the Beacon security footage.

Her eyes widened as she read this. _Ruby? Captured by terrorists? Why didn't Cinder tell me about this? Unless… no, this is Torchwick's doing._ If possible, the name was growled inside her mind. _I need to see where he's holed up this time. Warehouses? That's a good place to start. Then I'll figure out what this is about._

A moment later there was a flurry of sound and then the alley was empty.

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**Now before you all blow up, this chapter had already gone on longer than expected, but that just leaves more for next time. I said that Ruby and Torchwick would talk and I meant to have it in this chapter but... yea, too long. Plus I'm doing this at 12 in the night. I'm probably going to edit this sometime. **

**And who's that mystery woman? Who else just vanishes into thin air? I'm not giving any spoilers. (Wink wink). **

**So who's hyped for Volume 3?! Qrow, the tournament, and "Winter is coming."! I can't wait! **

**Now important stuff. The next update will be a while because I'm going to write at least the next two chapters, possibly three, before I upload them. Trust me, you don't want to wait for what's coming. Plus I've been neglecting some of my other stories and I should get back to them... sorry! **

**So for now, R.R.F.F! I'm going to get some sleep. **

**-OrangeGalen**


	9. Time Doesn't Heal All

**Hello everybody! I'm back with another installment of Stark Contrast. It's been a while, but it's here. A lot of things have happened, mainly VOLUME 3 IS FINALLY HERE! THE HYPE IS REAL AND IS STILL GROWING! This is the best volume yet, and only two episodes are out. Qrow and Winter! Gah! **

***cough* Anyway... **

**I've been going over this story and noticed some continuity errors along with other more mundane ones. Every chapter has now been edited (most are small things, like wording and grammar). The main change is that Tukson was stated to have been killed by Mercury in an early chapter, but then he was implied to be alive in a later one. This is how it is: Tukson is dead. He _was_ working with the White Fang, but defected to the government and was killed for that defection by Emerald and Mercury (Like in V2.E1.) I caught that because of what happens in this chapter, which I'll explain more at the end. **

**So now that that's cleared up, here's the next chapter!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. **

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"Well hello there Rose."

Ruby sighed. "Torchwick." _Just the person I really don't want to see. _

"No need to sound so depressed dearie, I just wanted to have a little chat with you." Torchwick said as he came closer, a slightly smug look on his face that's often seen on a predator's face after it's worn out it's prey.

Ruby groaned and closed her eyes. "Go away, I'm trying to sleep."

"You've had plenty of time with those two vixens and Mercury. I should get a turn."

"No."

"Wow, shutting me down already? You're as bad as Neo," Torchwick drawled.

Ruby cracked open an eye. "Maybe she has the right idea," she replied. She couldn't help but crack a small smile when Torchwick grumbled.

"You know you're making this harder than it needs to be," Torchwick said.

"Good. I didn't want to talk to you anyway." Ruby stated. _This is sorta' amusing, she thought to herself. _

"Why are you so contrary dearie? We're on the same side here." Ruby shuddered at being called 'dearie'.

"Which side is that? The side of thieves and terrorists?" As soon as the words came out of her mouth she winced. She knew what she said wasn't true… here at least. But dealing with _her_ White Fang had left its mark.

"And are the Hunter's better?" Torchwick shot back. _They're supposed to be…_ Ruby thought to herself. There was an awkward silence for a couple of beats.

"So apparently you're not Ebony," Torchwick opened up.

"Who?" Ruby asked, genuinely confused.

"My pet name for you… or Rose rather."

"Oh." _What is with him and his nicknames for people?_ "I guess I'm not," Ruby muttered.

"You guess?"

Ruby shook her head. "I _know_ I'm not her. This place is just so different, a stark contrast to my world."

"Riiight. I'm not sure I believe you. I know what the hunters are capable of and this could be an elaborate trap to kill all of us."

Ruby couldn't think of anything to say. She couldn't think because if she did, those images would come back. _No, it's better to stay this way. _A throbbing in her head started. "I don't know…" Ruby whispered.

"Right, your amnesia, different world, Dust crystal thing you have going on. You're messed up."

Ruby pulled a Blake and raised an eyebrow in a 'really?' position. "You're one to talk."

"You're right, I am."

"You just love the sound of your own voice."

"Damn right I do."

Ruby snorted at the absurdity of the situation and laughed as much as she could. _Here I am, stuck in a Oum-forsaken Remnant, having an almost civil banter with one of my arch-nemeses (that fire/glass/Dust lady, and anyone who takes my cookies included) while I'm confined to a medical bed after… stop. Don't think. _Ruby lost all humor and became emotionless.

Torchwick frowned for some reason. "So what exactly are you doing here?"

Ruby just stared blankly at him and he sighed irritably. "You are not making this easy." Ruby shrugged, still silent. "Great now she's turning into Neo."

Ruby shrugged again and then hissed in pain. Her ribs weren't 100% yet. "She's-gah!-She's nicer than you."

"You haven't seen the other side of her yet," Torchwick growled slightly. "Everyone has a different side, and I'm wondering if you are Rose's."

"I'm not her!" Ruby said as loudly as she could. "I'm not."

"Of course," Torchwick said mockingly. "Perhaps you're her light twin sister Red?" _Okay, now that's just creepy_. "This isn't _that_ kind of science fiction dearie. This is all just a big set up to finally kill us. After that you'll go back into their loving arms, a mission completed? I'm sure they'll _love_ to have you back," Torchwick continued, unaware of the consequences his comment would have.

Ruby's eyes shot open and her pupils dilated, the throbbing turning into drums._ Those hands. The hurt. The torture. Those eyes, those blood red eyes. Monsters. Go back? No. No! _"No. No no, I'm not going back! No, go away!" Suddenly everybody that was inside seemed like they were about to pounce on her. "Leave me alone! Please! Yang please! Help me…" she ended in a whimper as she curled up into a ball to get away from the pain and the memories. The throbbing in her head started to become deafening and then blackness overtook her.

* * *

Roman took a step back away from the panicking girl in front of him in shock. As much as he would protest, he had actually enjoyed the banter he had going with her… a little. Barely worth mentioning. The mood swings were a bit extreme, like a lesser toned down version of Cinder, but reacting in sadness rather than aggressively. But then he said something and the small, yet arguably powerful, girl was transformed into a quivering wreak of a human being.

Roman was frankly unnerved by this. Neo had been in their clutches for only a couple of hours before he got to her and she had been in a bad way too, but not this extreme. And he'd seen Ebony in the thick of combat before. He couldn't put the images of her and what was in front of him together. Ruby suddenly sucked in a breath and stiffened, then Roman was pushed out of the way by an extremely irate O'Malley.

"Damn it Torchwick, this is why I didn't want you in here!" O'Malley said as he got a needle and injected it into Ruby's neck. A few seconds later she relaxed limply onto the bed and O'Malley sighed before turning his gaze on Roman.

"First off, you. Out of here. No talking." O'Malley stated.

"Oh come on-" Roman started.

"I said. OUT!" O'Malley barked, a scalpel suddenly appearing in his hand. _Where the hell did that come from,_ Roman wondered.

"Alright, take it easy, I'm already gone," Roman said and backed out, keeping an eye on the scalpel. _I know how well he can throw that thing. _He closed the door and took a breather, trying to get his thoughts in order. A sudden silent presence drew his attention away.

He looked down and saw Neo staring up at him, an eyebrow cocked and a slightly smug look on her face. _'You should have listened.' _

"And you should know that I wouldn't have." Roman countered. "I didn't anyway."

Neo rolled her eyes. _'You don't say.'_ Then her face softened. _'How bad is she?'_

"Pretty bad," he said as he started walking away, Neo following.

_'You've seen worse before.' _

"And I know I have!"

_'But…?' _

Roman sighed and pressed a hand against his face. _Why did that disturb me so much? I've seen people who've been in their 'care' for years, people killed in front of me, but that shook me. Why? Why did seeing Rose… _"Because I still think of her as Rose," Roman said aloud.

_'Explain. Figure this out.' _

"Everyone's saying that she's not Rose, rather Ruby, but I still see the two together. I don't see them as separate people half the time. Still don't until I get real proof." He looked at Neo and couldn't get what she was 'saying' this time, so she took out her Scroll and typed.

_What if the proof has been right in front of you the entire time and you've just refused to see it?_

"Then I'll look like a fool," Roman said, meaning that he didn't care if he did, and that he didn't believe he was wrong. "And don't say that's a normal look for me."

Neo smirked as she pocketed the Scroll. _'Okay, I won't.'_

"You're a brat sometimes, you know that?"

Neo made a mock offended look and then turned away, making a soft scoffing sound. _'I'm an elegant, sophisticated lady, thank you very much.'_

"You're a brat, end of story," Roman said, a small smile on his face.

Neo playfully pouted and then became neutral. _'So now what are you going to do?'_

"Wait a day or so and then talk to her again." After he got a glare, he added, "And be a little more tactful this time."

_'That'll be the day.' _

"Hey, I've done my fair share of public speaking before. It's no problem."

_'Rebellion rallies don't count.' _

Roman grunted. "I'm still going to talk to her again. I need to be sure that she's not Rose, or has any mental thingy-going on."

_And how will you be sure? What will tell you something different than what we've been saying? _Neo typed out this time.

"Damnit woman! I don't know!" Roman shouted as he finally lost his temper. Neo flinched at the outburst. "I've fought Rose twice and each time I barely managed to escape in one piece. And each time she had a bloodthirsty grin on her face as she eviscerated everyone. She knew she outclassed me. She knew I stood no chance. She was playing with me each time! Everyone else died and she almost got me as well! Hell, even without her fuckin' team she could wipe the floor with us!"

_'She scares you.' _

"Fuck yes. I just can't picture her anyway else. Definitely not the innocent child she appears right now. And most definitely not in pain and mentally tortured as she is right now," Roman finished, subdued.

_What will happen when you're proven wrong? How will you accept her? _

"You're convinced about this alternate world thing?" Neo nodded. Roman sighed. "Honestly, I'm starting to think that's true. But for accepting her? I don't think I ever will. And that's fine. If I'm wrong, then I can be professional enough to work with her… just not too closely."

Neo smirked for some reason. _'You say that now…' _

"Shut up."

Neo smiled then looked at something behind him before her eyes grew wide and she suddenly vanished in a flash. "Wha-?" He turned around to see an extremely irate DuFrense marching towards him, thankfully not in 'Omega mode'.

"She's more trouble than it's worth," Roman muttered, preparing for the onslaught.

* * *

The streets of Vale were empty, which was abnormal considering it was early in the afternoon when the people would be out and about. All the shops were open, but there was nobody on the streets. A large swath of the inner city had been vacated quickly, for understandable reasons.

A small army of Grimm was parading through the streets.

Boarbatusks, Beowolves, Ursi, a couple Creeps, and a smaller King Taijitu and Deathstalker moved steadily down the streets, their eyes all black and aware, scanning the street for any sign of movement.

In front of the army were two yellow and white figures. Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee.

Yang Xiao Long. The bloodthirsty brawler and the powerhouse of RWBY. Xiao Long had felt like she had been in her half-sister's shadow almost since the day she was born by the slut Summer Rose (one thing they agreed on: she wasn't her mother). For some reason, Ruby Rose had always gotten special attention and training ahead of everyone else, earning phrase for her advancements. Xiao Long felt like she was left behind, and that brewed resentment. Which then turned to anger and hatred against her sister. She vowed to rise above her _younger_ sister and eventually surpass her in every way. Xiao Long was only partly successful, surpassing in certain areas like sheer strength and endurance, but falling behind in many, _many_ others like speed and agility and weapon design. Sparring practices were common throughout their lives, starting out relatively calm but eventually turning into a free-for-all to try and kill the other. Sometimes she came out on top, mostly Rose did, and on occasion they tied. Logically she knew she wouldn't beat Rose in those areas no matter how hard she tried. She just didn't have the mindset or ability to adapt nearly as much as Rose could.

Unfortunately, Yang Xiao Long wasn't really a logical person.

Weiss Schnee. The precision point aimed at the heart of the enemy and second in the hierarchy of RWBY. From a young age she had been told that a Schnee bows to no one. She's seen her father dominate over many other businessmen, but on a rare occasion also submit to a select few in power, like the Supreme Commander. It was those few that stood out in her mind. Somehow there were people stronger than her parents, ones that forced them to bow. From then on she had dreamed of becoming one of those people, to make everyone bow to her, a Master (or technically a Mistress). However one night changed her perspective when she accidentally spied in on her parents in their bedroom… For years after she wondered how her father became so submissive to her mother, how he could stand being treated that way. It wasn't until she met Rose at Beacon that she understood. Within a minute of meeting her Weiss had earned a scar with a lazy swipe of a scythe… and gained a Mistress.

It was that day she learned two important lessons: even Masters have leashes, and sometimes you can enjoy having a leash, no matter how perverse.

The two of them followed by their shadows came across a modest three-story apartment/store just a little off the downtown area. That was their target. Silvery strands covered the windows and the doors, sealing them shut. Weiss smirked, knowing that Belladonna did her job. She was the one that found out that this building is a meeting point for rebel sympathizers, both for the White Fang and Ember Rebels, which is why she sealed the building, so no one could run.

Weiss looked up and saw the black forms of the Reclusers***1** scurrying around the building tops, taking positions to watch the streets. She couldn't help but shudder. Almost everybody has an irrational fear of things that have more legs than they do; the most they can tolerate is four it seems. _Come to think of it, people don't like things that have no legs, like snakes too,_ she thought to herself. She shook her head to get rid of the random thoughts. They didn't serve any purpose and distracted her from the mission.

A smaller shadow detached itself from the edges of the alley and sauntered over to them with feline grace.

Blake Belladonna. The shadow and terror of RWBY. As a cat Faunus, she had encountered the prejudice that humans harbored for them, and vice-versa. Growing up outside the city made her stronger in order to survive until she stumbled upon a dead Hunter's Black Dust stash. She then enslaved the nearby Grimm to her will, which got the attention of the White Fang, which are always looking for potential recruits. She joined up, not for of the cause per-se, but because she enjoyed causing pain. She remained faithful to the organization (in her mind anyway) until she was approached by a woman calling herself Raven. Blake was at first hesitant to listen to her, but soon saw that the Hunters were better. Better trained, better supplied, and better in general. And they had power. Suddenly she realized that she was wasting her life working for the White Fang. If she wanted respect, she'd join the Hunters and demand respect. If she wanted, she could rise in the ranks and improve Faunus life through her efforts much better than in the WF. It wouldn't be easy; but when has anything in life worth doing been easy? Decision made, she leaked a train heist operation and let herself and her WF partner, Adam Taurus, be 'captured'. She defected and left him to rot for a chance at greatness.

Some would call her a traitor or a hypocrite for joining the government that subjugated her people in the first place; she referred it as 'being realistic and pragmatic'.

"So how many inside?" Weiss asked as the 'B' of their team joined them.

"Two families and eleven hostiles. Used to be thirteen but some tried to flee when they saw me," Belladonna said and gestured off to the side, where two rotted and blackened corpses resided, courtesy of her Grimm.

"Those Reclusers are a fuckin' piece of work aren't they?" Xiao Long commented.

"So, are we ready to go in?" Weiss asked, ignoring the brute.

"Unless anyone has any objections?" Belladonna inquired.

Weiss turned around and spoke to her Grimm amongst the small army. "Surround the block and make sure no one goes in or out. Don't go inside unless we call for you."

"What she said," Xiao Long said to her own Grimm.

The Grimm didn't acknowledge them in any way except to do as they said, near mindless as they were. They dispersed and the threesome turned to the entrance. Xiao Long took the initiative and grinned, pulling back a fist and then punched the door open with a punch aided by Burning Celica. The door shattered.

From inside, several shots rang out and Xiao Long backed out of the doorframe to avoid getting shot. Belladonna then used her Semblance to get inside, her clone absorbing the bullets. Weiss put up a blocking glyph and followed inside. Choosing a target, she charged forward and then swiped with her rapier, disarming a man… or dishanding him rather. He cried out and fell to the ground, cradling the stump on his arm, staining the ground red. A loud bang signified that Xiao Long had joined in, and the now body flying through the air to hit the back wall confirmed it.

"We're supposed to keep them alive." Belladonna commented, her tone saying that she didn't care either way as she bashed Gambol Shroud against a Faunus' head, knocking her unconscious.

"Eh, we can keep at least _one_ alive," Xiao Long shrugged.

"We got chewed out the last time we let too many of them die," Weiss said. She waved her rapier and used some ice Dust to freeze the rebels in the room to the floor and walls. She made a quick head count and saw they were missing a few. She went over to the man she dehanded and crouched down in front of him. "You. Tell me where the rest of you traitorous scum are and I'll make this relatively painless."

The man, a dog Faunus now that she saw him, looked up with pale eyes, cradling his bleeding arm. "Fuck you!"

"Mistress does that to me enough," Weiss muttered, then spun the Dust chamber till it hit the fire Dust and swiped her sword at the stump. He screamed as the flames ate at his skin, cauterizing the wound, and a bit of what was left of his arm. "I was going to be nice and freeze it, but you provoked me. Where. Are. They?"

"Go ahead and kill me already," he said defeated. "It's what's going to happen anyway."

"Eventually. We all die some day. Today for you isn't your day." Weiss made to shock him with more Dust, but a sudden bang from a gun and the subsequent metallic clang of Belladonna deflecting the bullet drew her attention away from the man.

"He went in there," Belladonna said, pointing to a set of doors that suddenly closed.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Xiao Long said and charged towards them. Weiss rolled her eyes and followed, Belladonna next to her.

She was understandably surprised when upon opening the doors Xiao Long let out an 'oof!' and suddenly reversed direction very quickly. So quickly that she caught her other two teammates, sending them all sprawling on the ground, though they recovered quickly.

Weiss looked up to see someone that she thought she saw the last of. Dressed in her pale blue and gold armored outfit***2** and that mysterious box on her hip, she looked like she had just stepped off to do a mission. The only things that marred her face were the burning intensity in her eyes, and half of her right rabbit ear missing.

"So, this is where the traitor ran off too," Weiss sneered. "Helping the filth of the earth. Why am I not surprised?"

"I'll give you one chance to turn away and leave this building," Velvet Scarlatina said in a low accented voice.

Weiss smirked evilly. "And I'll give you one chance to surrender with only part of your other ear missing, how about that?"

"No." With that, Velvet charged forward swinging her arm across her body, making WBY duck from the stream of Dust fire that came out from the crystal she was holding. Weiss looked up and cartwheeled out of the way when Velvet's leg passed through the space she was just in with a kick. Belladonna also avoided it my Semblancing away with a shadow clone. Xiao Long charged in with a series of punches and jabs, all of which Velvet ducked and weaved through, responding with her own kicks which she eventually landed one in Xiao Long's leg, causing her to tumble.

Belladonna fired a couple of shots that Velvet avoided by using some Dust to raise the stone underneath the floor up and deflect or absorb the rounds. Belladonna jumped over the barrier with a double swipe of her sheath and katana. Velvet deflected both blades with her vambraces, and responded with a lightning quick jab. Belladonna hopped backwards then went in for another attack, this time actually hitting Velvet, but the wound was quickly healed by the rabbit's Aura. Velvet gained just enough time to get a kick in that separated the two of them, giving them some room.

Weiss took advantage of this and charged forward with a linear stab, but before it connected, a monster-sized sword caught her in the chest and flung her backwards, driving the air out of her lungs and causing her Aura to deplete a good percentage.

She looked up to see a giant of a man grappling with Xiao Long. Before he left, he was quite possibly the only person who could match Xiao Long in strength and endurance. Yatsuhashi Daichi was arguably the most honorable person that attended Beacon in several classes. It was little wonder why he joined and defended Scarlatina if you look at it from a certain perspective.

Weiss growled and rushed forward again to strike the warrior, but he noticed her approach and kicked Xiao Long's legs out from under her and threw her at Weiss. Weiss ducked under the flying blond brute and continued on, quickly slashing at Daichi. Weiss smirked as she landed several successive hits on him before he brought his sword to bare. She was made for quick, elegant strikes whereas Daichi was broader in his approach, due to his height and style. Weiss cartwheeled from the downward slash, but lost her balance as the impact wave buffeted her and she stumbled. That was enough time for Velvet to come out of nowhere and kick her, sending Weiss skidding across the floor into one of the newly made corpses.

_Fuckin' A! We're getting our asses kicked! What the fuck is wrong with us?! _Weiss jumped up and slid over to Xiao Long, whose hair was starting to give off wisps of flames. "This isn't working."

"No shit Bitch," Xiao Long growled.

Belladonna appeared next to them, having wisely taking a more cautious approach and stayed away from the defected pair. "We can take both of them. We outnumber them."

"On three." Weiss ordered. "One, two three!" WBY charged and ducked/jumped over shards of glass that Velvet shot at them. Belladonna blocked Yatsuhashi's sword with both of her weapons, then Yang punched him in the gut, sending him back. Weiss made several thrusts at Velvet, making her backpedal and deflect the blade with her vambraces. She shot some ice Dust at her, but Weiss flicked her sword and the ice went around her, then crossed her arms to absorb a kick Velvet sent.

Weiss growled, then adjusted Myrtenaster's Dust to the repulse Dust. When Velvet came at her again, Weiss flicked her blade twice; the first causing Velvet's arm when she blocked the strike to fling violently backwards, throwing her off balance, then the second cutting across her chest. The strike didn't have that much power in it, but it was enough for Velvet to get thrown backwards and her own Aura to get dropped a bit.

Weiss allowed herself to smile, which was increased when, with a grunt, Yatsuhashi skidded backwards, looking a little tired. Weiss' smile dimmed a little bit, seeing the rest of her team looking as tired, but reformed it. _We can do this. We can finally kill them. _

"This is not the best situation Velvet-san," Yatsuhashi spoke to her, keeping his eyes on WBY. "We should fall back and regroup."

"No, help is on the way, Aaron called for it before this," Velvet responded. "We can still pull through."

"I doubt help would make it in time," Belladonna said, her ears twitching. "We have this building surrounded and sealed off. It's hopeless."

"Well, you know what they say about hope," drawled a new voice from the doorway. Everybody turned to see two newcomers standing just inside the building. One had darker skin and deep red eyes with green hair, the other had grey hair and eyes, and a lighter complexion.

Emerald and Mercury had arrived.

* * *

_(Several Hours later)_

Neopolitan stood looking out at the city from her perch on the roof of the warehouse. They were obviously off of the main city so it was darker in their area, making it easier for her to see the glow of inner Vale. She came here to calm down or to think on difficult days. This was one of them.

She had known Roman for years, since they were kids living on the fear filled streets, trying to eek out a living mainly by pickpocketing. During that time they visited several underground groups opposed to the current regime and trained to fight. Each time after three months tops the groups were shut down by way of sword and Dust rounds, courtesy of the Hunters, and each time Neo and Roman barely escaped with their lives. It wasn't until a little over a year ago, after they attracted enough attention to be labeled nuisance, that Queen had contacted them and offered them a proposition they didn't want to refuse: a plan to end the Hunter government. There were many details that still needed to be roughed out, but it was a better plan than what they had seen by a long shot. One that actually had a very good chance of succeeding. Cinder was a natural-born leader that almost oozed charisma, and she had three things that the others didn't. Three very important things: a working plan, money to fund them, and a rightful claim.

So here they were, closing in on the endgame. It was still some distance away, but it was in sight.

But there was a potential wrench thrown in the workings that went by the name of Ruby Rose.

Suddenly the girl had been dropped in their laps and it opened up new possibilities, and dangers.

After Ruby had been brought in, Neo had copied the files Roman got _(should have left the chip in a better spot than in your pants' pocket)_ and looked over them and had agreed with Emerald and Mercury: Ruby had changed. The Black Reaper had been swapped with a now broken girl. _She still knows how to fight, but not to kill,_ Neo made the distinction. _She hasn't been hardened by the world we live in. Unfortunately she'll have to in order to survive. _

Her conversation with Roman after was… difficult. More so than normal, but that was because he had genuine reasons to not trust Ruby. _Trust is a bad word, more like accept her, though Roman would go for tolerate._ The two times Roman had encountered the Black Reaper he had come back and gotten drunk, something he doesn't do often. Neo tried to make him see reason or the facts they had so far, and she supposed she got him to make a compromise of sorts.

Now she was on the roof, parasol in her hands, standing like a guard statue looking. She had gone there to unwind, but as time went by and the night grew, the more something felt… off.

It was as if a storm was coming and it was the breath before it hit. The air felt tense. She could feel something was about to happen.

Ten, almost eleven days since Em and Merc brought Ruby to them. Things were happening, but nothing major yet. And that was what worried her. So what started out as a stress reliever turned into a watch. Her eyes looked around, looking for anything different, anything out of the ordinary.

_There_. A shadow moving out of the light. Neo narrowed her heterochromatic eyes and scanned around the area she saw movement. She flicked to another spot when she saw another flash, but couldn't see anything definite. _Maybe I can put up an illusion to hide the warehouse? Temporarily? No, too much effort for little results. _

Suddenly a cloaked figure stepped out of the shadows much too close to the base. And they showed no signs of stopping. In that moment, Neo became frightened. Her eyes turned pale and she stumbled back a step. She knew that color and whom that cloak belonged to. And she knew now that everyone here in their way was going to be in a world of hurt.

Now Neo couldn't talk per-se, but she could still make sounds and the occasional word or two, she just preferred not to as it was slightly painful and a personal choice. However, seeing that cloak anywhere near them brought two words to her lips.

_"Oh shit." _

She vanished in a flash, back inside. Even a few seconds warning is better than nothing.

She appeared in the middle of a group of White Fang soldiers, who were startled when she appeared. She started waving her arms and shoving them away from the path the person would take.

"Hey! What's the idea here?" One of them shouted. Neo just shook her head and pointed franticly away, hoping they would get it.

There was a loud bang and then the metallic thud of a door falling. That, combined with the look she probably had on her face convinced the White Fang members to follow her advice and they scrambled away with panicked shouts. Neo in turn ran to where Roman would be, since he would be the one they went after.

The noises and panicked shouts grew louder as she grew closer to where he was. As she turned the corner, she saw him leaning out of his door. "What is going on here?!" He shouted.

Neo skidded to a halt and pulled out her scroll and typed a short message. _Sheshere_ . It was a bad sign when her typing wasn't perfect and Roman knew it.

"Who-" He was cut off when a guard went flying into the wall behind Neo and a pair of bootsteps came closer. A figure turned the corner and Roman's eyes widened comically. "Oh shit," he echoed Neo earlier.

"Torchwick," the person, the woman, said. "Where is she?" She demanded.

"Ah, well you see, she's uh…"

"Don't Grimmshit me. Where. Is. She?"

Roman gulped. "This way," he gestured.

* * *

Ruby was worried. She had woken up from her panic attack a couple of hours ago and immediately felt ashamed because of it, no matter how much Doc told her it was normal and acceptable. She still felt disgusted, both with herself and the people- no, animals that caused her to end up like this. The only thing that was keeping her mind from collapsing was that she knew she was from another world, another Remnant.

_I hate this. I hate all of this. I hate being weak, I hate being stuck here, I hate it hate it hate it! I just want to go home. I don't want to remember any of this._ Ruby sat brooding in her bed, getting up a couple of times to use the toilet or heal herself again. She could feel herself getting better, but she didn't _feel_ better. Her body had gone down to a dull ache, save for her ribs, but she felt tired. All the time. The only moments she had energy were when she wanted to heal herself.

All this time left her little choice than to go over the conversation she had with Torchwick. A tiny bit of her appreciated the candor and jibes they traded, but mostly she felt that it could have gone better. _Of course, what did I expect to happen? He's _Torchwick_, here and there. _

Ruby was drawn from her thoughts as yet again she heard loud voices from outside the room. She recognized Torchwick's voice, strangely tense and panicked, and he was answered by another woman's, one that Ruby didn't recognize.

_"Are you sure this is what you want?" _

_"Don't even start with me Torchwick. Her face is everywhere and don't tell me I wouldn't recognize her." _

Doc came up next to Ruby and muttered, "Now what is he doing?"

The doors opened again. Torchwick came in first, followed by Neo. Then a third person came in and Ruby felt her breath hitch and she felt faint.

She had seen pictures, and had very old memories of her. The smell of cookies and the warm hugs. The smell of roses in bloom. She had seen her white cloak that her own was based off of. The same hair, right down to the red tips at the end. Almost the same face…

And the exact same silver eyes that she now made contact with.

She knew her.

"…Mom?"

Summer Rose.

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**I'll give you a moment to freak out...**

**...Done? Okay.**

**Yes, for those that didn't get my not so subtle hints, Summer Rose is now here. She's obviously going to have a major role in the alternate Remnant, but you'll have to wait. And before you ask, Qrow, Winter, and Raven will be making appearances in the future (some sooner than others). On a side note, now that they've all but said that Raven's Yang's mom, I can go ahead with ideas in later chapters.**

**The reason I found out Tukson's dead (or decided he is) is because I was going to put him in this chapter. WBY was going to go into his bookstore to kill him, but it's kinda' hard to do that if he's already dead. So we have Velvet and Yatshuhashi(? If I don't have his name in front of me, I can't remember it) as the main people, who were going to appear anyway regardless.**

**The Reclusers are my original Grimm (not-so-original for the fandom), and the stats are at the bottom. **

**Important! I'll update pretty soon so you won't have to wait long. Either by the weekend or next Thursday at max since the next chapter's coming along pretty well.**

**So I'll leave you to your lives, and remember to Read, Review, Favorite, and Follow (R.R.F.F)**

**-OrangeGalen**

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***1: Recluser: spider Grimm. 3-4ft tall &amp; 7-9ft wide (10-14 w/legs fully extended). 8 legs with 2 oversized mandibles in the front. Plates on the head and cephalothorax, and grows more on the legs. Abdomen grows miniature razor sharp spikes like hair, growing larger with age. Venomous: bites cause necrosis. If injected, venom can spread throughout the body, killing a person in minutes. Can make webs. 6 eyes in pairs, with one pair centered. Class A- Grimm due to numbers and lethality. If a nest is found, immediate eradication is recommended.  
****Habitat: Nests is caves and forests, but have been found closer to human/Faunus cities and in large abandoned buildings. Prefers darker areas.  
****Strengths: Surprise, stealth, numbers, swiftness, venomous, webs ensnare/entangle &amp; hard to get off without tools. Grimm spikes are sharp. C.Q.C at own risk. Venom has no known cure.  
****Weaknesses: Strike at the unarmored leg joints &amp; cephalothorax-abdomen area, or from behind at the abdomen. Legs are relatively weaker than body, so once the legs are disabled, the Recluser becomes more manageable. Eyes are a weak point, and inside the mouth is another if one can attack it. Strong piercing weapons, larger blunt force weapons, or explosive/incendiary rounds recommended. Strong Dust attacks at affect the entire Grimm are effective, such as lightning or freezing it solid. Webs can be cut with a sharp blade, or be burnt through, or frozen then shattered. Fire/ice travels across the webs, making them susceptible for large swaths to be taken out at once.**

**-Got this idea from the Brown Recluse spider in the U.S. Had several close encounters with this spider (or a similar type) over the summer at camp. There were five of those fuckers in _one_ tent we were rolling up. I was paranoid as hell for the rest of the day. I was originally going to call them Widows, but I found that the Recluse was a nastier spider. **

***2: Velvet's original color scheme for the Fan Art contest. **


	10. Ghosts From the Past

**I told you I'd update today. And for the first time in forever is seems like I actually kept to that. Hooray for me!**

**This is the chapter that finally puts this story in the 50K range! This is now my second longest story (_On The Road, Far From Home_ my first.)**

**A lot of you were pleasantly surprised at Summer's inclusion, which was my plan all along! So here's to Summer! Also, how's everyone liking the new Volume? Pretty awesome right? I just can't get a grasp on Winter's personality. She switches so often...**

**Anyway, that's irrelevant to the story so I'll stop now. **

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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"…Mom?" Ruby said weakly. _It… it couldn't be. It _can't_ be. She's… dead. _

Summer Rose, alive and breathing, took a few more steps inside the medical ward. Everyone had fallen silent, waiting to see how this would play out. The tension in the air was palpable and could be cut with a knife.

Ruby watched as her long dead mom came closer, her echoing footsteps the only sound. Emotions long dormant began to resurface. As desperately Ruby didn't want to hope, as she knew it was impossible, she couldn't help but feel it bubbling up. Feelings of being held as a child and cared for. By a mother. Visions of being a family together again came to her mind. Her, Yang and Mom and Dad, laughing as one, as a family remade. No more darkness. It was almost painful to feel, to _hope_. Her greatest desire right in front of her.

Summer stepped next to Ruby and looked down at her. Silver eyes met silver eyes. There was something indiscernible in Summer's eyes as she approached, but then they suddenly hardened, the silver turning cold. "Rose."

With that one word Ruby's world came crashing down. Those visions were blown away and scattered by that one word, as frostily stated as the uppermost regions of Atlas. Rose. That one word. That one _name_. The name that the other her went by. The one that everyone called her. The name of the other. It wasn't her.

And now her own mother called her that. She hated her, believed that she was on the opposite side. The Hunter's side. She believed that she was the enemy. Her own daughter.

Then it came to her. With that last thought she realized this wasn't _her_ mother… not really. They were both strangers to each other, more so than ever now. A reality crossed family. Summer and Ruby, mother and daughter… from different worlds. Unfortunately Ruby's feelings were still there, begging to be released, coddled, accepted.

"No. No! I'm not her!" Ruby protested frantically. "I'm different! I'm not like her; Rose, I'm Ruby! Ruby! Not Rose, I'm not her!"

"Save it," Summer snapped, cutting her off. Ruby choked on her protests from the rebuke. "I don't want to hear the excuses they've fed you to parrot. The only reason you're not dead yet is because I don't know what the hell is going on here. Right now you better hope the people here have a damn good reason for keeping you alive. How much information you have and how we can squeeze it out of you before we're done. "

Ruby choked back a sob. Never in her life had she felt so worthless as she did right now. Even back… there and then, she felt something like a human. She at least believed that she was. Now she felt less than dirt; something disgusting that was left rotting in the bottom of a dump. Even her own mom was suggesting something similar to what the human Grimm did. "Please, just… just listen. Mom? Please?" Ruby whispered.

"No. You denied that I'm your mother since you were five. I've returned the favor and left like you asked. Now I get to say this to your face. You are no daughter of mine. _Don't_ enjoy your short life while you can," Summer spat, then turned on her heel and pushed past the crowd that they had gathered, her white cloak billowing behind her.

There was silence, as if the entire world had stilled. Ruby was in shock once more. She refused to comprehend what just happened. _She… rejected me? She hates me? But… I don't even know her. She doesn't know me! I'm not me, or _her_ rather! I'm not Rose, but she thinks I am. She thinks that I'm her daughter, and she was my mom. She's my mom. Why did she leave me? Why? No! She's not my mom. She's from this world. She's not… she looks just like her. She looks like mom. Mom. Why did you leave me? Why do you hate me so much? What have I done to you? Please mom. Make it stop hurting. Take the pain away. Please, come back. Oh Oum she hates me! _

It started out as a quiet sob. First one tear. Then another. And another. Then the dam broke and Ruby wept in anguish, her cries tearing apart her heart, echoing in the silence. The bandage had been ripped away and the scars reopened. Ruby couldn't help but wail uncontrollably, tears streaming down her face. Never before had she felt this crushed, this pitiful. Years old pain resurfaced and Ruby cried in despair like she never had before.

It hurt. It hurt so much to have her mom so close yet so far away. To have that hope and suddenly find it ripped away. _Just like everything else in this world does,_ a part of her thought ruefully. She wanted to rip her heart out to stop it from hurting, but she knew it was impossible. So all she could do was cry. Sometimes they were tears of sadness, sometimes hate, anger, loneliness, but never happy, joyful tears. Never. She wasn't able to produce those tears anymore.

She didn't hear as people left, nor when Doc sat next to her and tried to comfort her. It didn't matter. Ruby didn't hear any of it.

Once again, as she had many times before since coming here, Ruby cried herself asleep, feeling emptier than ever before.

* * *

Roman had winced with the rest of them as Summer had gone on her tirade, _which wasn't completely undeserved, but still, a little harsh. In all honesty I think that went worse than my conversation with Ebony earlier… at least_ that _could be called a conversation. _When Summer basically told Rose that she wanted her dead and stormed off, he wasn't the first to move. In fact he was dead last. It was enough to see Rose break down, and he then left in a hurry in order to avoid hearing her cries of pain and sorrow. He didn't want those feels.

He walked out the door and saw Summer standing in the middle of the hallway with her head bowed, the white cape covering her body and the hood pulled up. Neo was standing awkwardly behind her shifting her weight from foot to foot, looking anywhere but at her, uncertain if it were safe to approach the woman.

Roman frowned a bit and stuck his hand in his pocket for a cigar and lighter, but felt the data chip in there with them. He closed his eyes. _Nope, I didn't feel that data chip at all. It's not the data chip that has very good evidence that Rose might not be Rose. It's not the data chip that has hours of video footage of her… interrogation at Beacon. And it's certainly not the data chip that might change Summer's mind about who Rose is. Nope, most certainly not. I definitely don't have any moral obligation to give it to her to at least attempt to put back their family. Yeah, morals, what're those? Definitely don't have none of those. So I'm not going to give this data chip over to her so she can make up her own mind about Ebony in there, because _I_ certainly haven't. For all I know she's still Ebony. Nope. Not gonna' do it…_

_…Aw hell. _

Coming up behind her he made a noise to say something but Summer held up a hand and said, "Don't." She kept her head down, facing away from them. "I don't want to hear anything you have to say about her. Finish interrogating her and then do whatever. I'm done with her."

"But-" Roman was cut off again.

"No. If you're trying to change my mind for whatever insane reason, she made her decision first. I made mine as well. I don't want to hear her lies. She can't be trusted." Summer said, something hidden in her voice.

"You know there is a reason why she's here that you may find interesting," Roman finally got out.

"Oh? And what is it," she snapped, spinning around so her face was right in Roman's. He could see her silver eyes, barely lit from the shadows of her hood. They simmered almost like Cinder's did with inner emotion. Just what that emotion was, Roman couldn't determine. "That she's suddenly had a change of heart and decided to spill all the juicy little secrets that Ozpin has? That she's chosen to become a pacifist and paint rainbows and unicorns everywhere? Something like that, _hmm_?" She finished a few inches away from his face, and he couldn't maintain eye contact any longer.

"Wellll…" Roman considered_. Some of it's right._

"Go to hell. I saw something different about her, but it was false. She's lying, acting. Whatever she's said or done… she can't be trusted. She can't. When she's not a loyal huntress is the day the Grimm become harmless cuddly puppies. I don't- I _refuse_ to believe that she's changed."

"Summer, wait-" Roman tried again.

"No." She whispered. With that, Summer suddenly dissolved into a storm of white rose petals, which then scattered past Roman and Neo on unseen winds further into the base.

Neo slowly came up next to him. _'Well, that didn't go over well.'_

"You don't say," Roman drawled, a bit of a growl seeping into his voice. _This has just been one of those days. I've been thinking that a lot lately y'know._

_'Do you think she's still Rose after that?' _

"Damnit, we're still on this?" Roman sighed in exasperation. With Neo's nod, Roman grunted. "Fine, I'll admit that it's looking… unlikely that Ebony's still Ebony. But until Doc can verify that by checking her mind, I'll still have that dose of paranoia. Probably even after."

Neo rolled her eyes, _'Finally.' _She nodded her head in the direction Summer disappeared to. _'We need to go after her.' _

"_We_ are not going anywhere near her. Not right now. We're likely to loose something important if we do. Let her calm down a bit." _You know, it's actually pretty late right now. _"In fact, let's go to sleep and have a brand new day to figure this crap out."

Neo sighed, but nodded. _'That sounds like a good idea.' _

"Well, I do have them on occasion." Neo snorted.

There was a muffled thump and some cursing, and the duo turned to see the quartet of Emerald, Mercury, Yatsuhashi, and Velvet stagger around the popular corner with a handful of other people in various states of wellbeing. All had their clothes worse for wear, some had cuts and bruises. Yatsuhashi himself was being supported by Velvet and another as his leg looked like it was hurt in some fashion. The bloodstains on his clothes were what really gave it away.

Roman raised an eyebrow at the motley group. _I know I'm going to regret asking this. _"What the hell happened to you guys?"

Emerald looked at Mercury, who shrugged. "Well…"

* * *

_(Several Hours earlier) _

"Well, you know what they say about hope," Mercury drawled from the doorway. Everyone had paused to take in the new arrivals. Xiao-Long, Belladonna, Schnee, Velvet and Yatsuhashi were all in combat stances, waiting for the second act to start.

"… Well, what do they say?" Emerald asked after a pause.

Mercury shrugged. "I don't know, it just sounded like a good thing to say." Emerald groaned.

"So," a voice caught their attention. It was the youngest Schnee speaking. "Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black. You're the ones that broke Rose out and compromised Beacon."

"Yep, that's us," Mercury said.

"How did you get past our Grimm?" Xiao Long snarled.

"Eh, it wasn't that hard. Just needed to be quicker than them," Mercury said.

"If you don't want to suffer, you'll tell us where you're keeping Rose," Belladonna said, pointing her katana at them.

"Just like your partner Adam didn't suffer after you stabbed him in the back?" Emerald shot back. "Did you honestly think we'd stand down by you asking?"

WBY didn't respond verbally. Instead Xiao Long charged forward firing away with her gauntlets. Emerald and Mercury rolled in the same direction, and then ducked when a fist passed through where they were standing. Then the battle began again.

Mercury kicked out and got Xiao Long in the side before trying the same thing with the other foot. She blocked that strike, so he attacked several times with the same before spin kicking her, hitting the same rib area. She growled and threw several shotgun aided punches that forced him back before he retaliated with a shot from his own boot, causing a miniature explosion as the blasts connected. _This is going to be fun, _Mercury thought to himself.

Emerald on the other hand started playing support when Velvet and Yatsu started attacking again. She fired a couple times at the Heiress with her guns, forcing her to defend, leaving Belladonna to momentarily fend for herself against VY. The traitor was doing well until Yatsuhashi made a horizontal slash that she just didn't have the strength to defend against and was thrown aside, not getting far enough from her shadow clone. Velvet on the other hand had gone after Schnee, and they were duking it out.

Seeing that they had it under control, Emerald went around to the various White Fang survivors scattered around the floor. She knelt down next to a dog Faunus that looked like his hand had been burnt off. "Can you walk?" Emerald asked urgently as she broke apart the ice.

"Yes." He answered. "My hand however…" He looked down at the stump.

"You're alive, that's what counts." Emerald helped him put it in perspective. "Now, help the others get to the roof. There'll be a Bullhead coming in a few minutes to extract us." The man nodded and went to another Faunus and started helping her up.

Another Faunus came out of the back and ducked over to Emerald. "Glad to see you got our call."

"The Lieutenant forwarded your call as we were in the neighborhood," Emerald replied dryly. "Help get the rest of them to the roof. We'll deal with the huntresses."

He nodded and headed over to free another. Deeming that there were enough helping out, Emerald returned to the fray. She was immediately met by Schnee and blocked her rapier with her dual kusarigama. The duel between the two was fierce as they were both quick and agile, striking multiple times with one movement. Every thrust was met with a deflection, then repose, counterstrike, block, another thrust, slash, jab, all in the space of a couple seconds.

_I have to admit, she's good,_ Emerald thought as she tilted her head to avoid another cut. _Watching her during sparing sessions didn't do it justice._ She smirked as she deflected another thrust. _But I know I'm better. _

Letting Schnee's blade slide along hers, she closed the distance and got inside the white haired girl's space. Using her free weapon, she swung upwards trying to catch Schnee on her leg. Schnee flipped backwards to avoid the potentially crippling cut, but Emerald didn't let up and unlocked the chain on one of her weapons and wrapped it around one of Schnee's legs. She yanked on it and then slashed across Schnee's chest with her other weapon, leaving a cut that soon left a red stain.

Schnee freed herself from the chain and glanced down at the cut. The bleeding had halted thanks to her Aura, but the cut was still present. Her blue eyes narrowed and met Emerald's red. "You'll pay for that."

"Eh, that's what they all say," Emerald said. Before she could resume the fight, she had to step back from a stray shotgun blast from Xiao Long, who then followed her own shot, thanks to Mercury who had wrapped up his fight with the blond bimbo.

Mercury smirked, seeing WBY stagger to their feet after the beatdown they got, but it faded a bit, seeing Yatsuhashi favoring a leg, which had a growing stain on his pants. Velvet also looked winded, and he could feel a tiny bit tired himself. _Okay, this has gone on long enough._ He took a look around and saw that everyone that could be was evacuated. _No need to fight them anymore, especially since we're on borrowed time. And knowing these three, more than their Grimm might be coming. _

"Let's go," Mercury said. He kicked and shot twice mainly as cover fire and started going backwards to the stairs. Emerald also started shooting, making WBY scatter or put up barriers to block the shots. Once they got to the stairs, Velvet threw some ice Dust behind them to seal the way.

"That won't hold them for long… especially from Xiao Long," Velvet said as she helped Yatsuhashi up the stairs.

"Then we'll just have to hope then," Mercury said.

"You know, you're talking a lot about hope recently, makes me wonder if you're secretly an optimist," Emerald joked.

Mercury glared at her, but shrugged. _Honestly, things _have_ changed. How though remains to be seen. _

Velvet created another ice barrier as they heard a horrendous crack and shattering sounds from downstairs. "And there goes the first one," Mercury muttered.

Going up the last flight of stairs, they found the other five Faunus crouched behind a door. "What is the matter?" Yatsuhashi asked, out of breath.

"The entire roof is swarming with spiders!" The dog Faunus with the missing hand said. "Aaron found that out the hard way."

"Ohhh, right. We forgot about that." Mercury winced.

"Now what?" Someone said, a hint of panic in his voice as a second crash was heard.

"Alright, here's what we'll do," Velvet said and handed off Yatsuhashi to a couple of people. "Mercury, Emerald, we'll take point and form a perimeter to protect them, since that's what we're supposed to do. Yatsu, sorry but you'll have to take it easy with that leg and stay with them."

He nodded in understanding. "I will do so Velvet-san."

"The rest of you, if you have weapons, provide covering fire. Focus it at the Recluse's eyes."

"Got it," was the general reply.

"Why weren't you team leader?" Emerald asked lightly.

"Wasn't bloodthirsty enough I suppose," Velvet shrugged, the stump of her ear twitching in ghost pain.

"We better go," Yatsuhashi said, hearing thundering up the stairs.

"One, two, three, go!" Velvet counted, and burst through the door, Dust lightning coming from her hand, shocking the Grimm closest to the door, turning their ichor black skin to a lighter charcoal. Emerald and Mercury came after, Em firing away, hitting her targets with accurate shots and Mercury kicking them and breaking limbs from the hits. The rest of them came streaming out; only two had kept their weapons but were firing at the black masses.

There were about twenty Recluses left, but after the initial break, they started swarming again. The three fighters were hard pressed to keep them at bay as the group went to the edge of the building. A whine was heard as a bullhead came swooping down, then the sound of firing weapons as the White Fang inside opened up on the Grimm. "Come on!" One of them gestured to get in.

"You heard him, get!" Mercury shouted as he kicked another Grimm, the bullet from his boot turning its brain into mush. There was a rush as they got in, but not before the huntresses caught up.

A whistling was heard and then an explosion against the bullhead as Xiao Long shot her longer distance cartridges at the bullhead in an effort to bring it down, Schnee using her infernal glyphs to protect the blond. Everyone stumbled around, trying to get their balance in the swaying air vehicle.

"Velvet!" Emerald shouted at her, urging her to do something.

Velvet reached into her pocket and grabbed another Dust crystal, a red one, and chucked it. It landed on the roof and rolled a bit. Emerald turned her gun on it and shot, creating a large explosion that knocked down WBY and a few Grimm.

"Go! Go! Go!" The dog Faunus shouted, and the door closed and they sped off. After a few seconds everyone took a huge collective breath as they finally got out of that.

"Let's not do that again for a while," Mercury joked, getting agreeing nods from everyone.

* * *

_(Several hours later)_

"After that, we needed to hitch a ride here in a WF truck since our bullhead was damaged and leaving a trail of smoke that anyone could have followed if they probably didn't have us on radar." Emerald finished her tale, half an hour later.

"Four-Seven-Niner was certainly happy about ditching her bullhead," Mercury sarcastically said.

"And now you're here," Roman concluded. He sighed, I knew I shouldn't have asked.

"Yeah," Emerald agreed. They had found themselves back in the medical ward where the others were being looked over by Doc and Velvet, who had some medical training. Everyone, except for the dog Faunus with the missing hand, had treatable injuries and would be able to make a full recovery.

"Honestly we got lucky," Mercury said. "If it were a full team, or there had been more, we wouldn't have been able to save anyone. Hell, even a few minutes later and there wouldn't have been a point."

"Well with these 'purges' happening lately every person is better than nothing," Roman commented, inadvertently glancing at Rose who was in a deep, exhaustion induced sleep, then immediately looking away to avoid talking about her.

No such luck. Emerald caught the glance. "So how is she?"

"Uh, who? Velvet? She seems fine to-OW!" Roman cut off when Neo smacked him in the back of the head. He glared at her, Neo pulling an innocent look that nobody bought, before he growled and said, "Fine. Rose isn't getting any better in the head anyway. In fact she might have been set back to when she first arrived."

"Ooookay? Why?" Mercury asked.

"Guess who showed up today. Somebody with personal issues with her."

It took a moment before both of their faces paled. On Emerald it was incredible looking. "She didn't," she said in horror.

"_Oooooh_ yeah. It went about how you'd expect."

Emerald looked over at Rose. "That's terrible."

"It wasn't completely undeserved," Roman replied.

Emerald gave him the most loathsome gaze ever. "You're an asshole."

"What? What'd I say?"

Emerald angrily sighed. "Nothing. Fuck it; Merc, let's go." Mercury shrugged and followed her out.

Roman sighed and looked over at Neo, who gave him a _'Really?'_ look. Getting no help there, he pulled out his cigar and lighter and had just took a drag when DuFrense stormed over. "Not in here Roman!" He plucked the cigar out of his mouth and tossed towards the door.

_Goddamn, everyone's so tense these days,_ he thought, conveniently looking over the fact that he was part of the everyone. "You know what, fuck it. I'm done with today. Don't wake me up unless the building's collapsing." He stalked out, lighting a new cigar as he went.

* * *

_(Several hours earlier)_

Weiss watched as the White Fang bullhead soared away with the traitorous scum inside. The aircraft was leaving behind a trail of smoke, but they wouldn't be able to follow it in the physical condition they were in.

"Fucking shit!" Xiao Long bellowed as her hair ignited in anger. Weiss silently agreed with that sentiment, but her mind was now racing on how to salvage this.

"What do we do?" Belladonna asked accusingly, as if it were her fault.

"Don't take that tone with me!" Weiss shot back. "Let me think. Contact Miss Goodwitch and see if they can track that bullhead."

"Oh no, you're doing that," Belladonna smirked. "You're the team leader for now. It's your job to take responsibility for this."

Weiss snarled and held the point of Myrtenaster under the Faunus' jaw, but then lowered it in resignation. "Fine," she growled. She pulled out her Scroll and called Goodwitch with major trepidation. After three rings, her face appeared on the screen.

_"Miss Schnee, I do hope you have a good reason for calling." _

"Yes, we found a White Fang hideout in the city, but some of the rebels escaped in a bullhead. I would like to request for it to be tracked so we can pursue."

_"Negative." _

"Wha-?" Weiss started, but Goodwitch cut her off.

_"You already have prisoners to bring back. There's no need to go after them at this time. Bring what you have back to Beacon." _

"Uhh, about that…" Weiss said warily, preparing for the inevitable chastising.

_"Miss Schnee…"_ Goodwitch said with a warning clear in her voice. Weiss would have imagined her tapping her foot in impatience if she wasn't terrified.

"All of the alive rebels escaped Ma'am. Velvet Scarlatina and Yatsuhashi Daichi were with them, and Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black came to assist them. We were outnumbered, which allowed them to escape."

Goodwitch's eyes narrowed and Weiss fought the urge to look away. _"You let them go."_ Weiss didn't say anything since nothing would help the situation. Goodwitch made a sound that was halfway between a sigh and a growl. _"Team RWBY is in a precarious situation right now as your past successes are now being eroded away by your current lack of progress… For now, salvage the situation and then return to Beacon. A few days for reflection might have some positive benefits for you. A full report is to be expected. " _

"Yea Ma'am," Weiss replied morosely. Goodwitch ended the call and Weiss put away the Scroll. She looked around, her mind thinking. _What would Mistress do? How would she turn this into a victory? We failed, so how to make this work? _She eyed the blackened Faunus body on the roof that had been killed by necrosis. That gave her an idea. _Oh, that would work. Yes, that will definitely work. And we can paint it as the White Fang's doing. Mistress would approve. _

"Alright!" She said, getting the attention of Belladonna and Xiao Long. "This is what we're going to do now. We'll burn the building down with everyone inside," Weiss said. "They allowed the White Fang inside their home, and now they'll pay the consequences. Afterwards we'll blame it on those scum."

"That sounds reasonable." Belladonna commented.

"Good," Xiao Long said and stalked downstairs.

WB looked at each other in mutual understanding. Xiao Long when agitated tends to become a loose cannon, and they didn't want to be on the firing range when she let off. With a quick order to her Grimm to go back to Beacon, Belladonna and Weiss headed down, hearing crashes and smelling smoke rising. When they got down, most of the first floor already had flames crawling up the walls.

"Yeah, she's really pissed off now," Belladonna dryly commented.

"Let's just not be inside when the building collapses. She might survive it falling on her, but not us." Weiss responded.

"Maybe we should block the door to test that?"

Weiss had to give a smirk at that. "Tempting, but we're already walking on thin ice with Goodwitch. Let's not give her an excuse."

Belladonna shivered. "Good point. Besides she's wild in bed." She turned. "Hey, Firecracker! We're going! Unless you want the building collapsing on you…"

"_Fine I'm_ _c_oming," Xiao Long shouted as she came out of the back, her hair on fire.

The three huntresses in training exited out of the building just as a crash was heard. As they and their Grimm walked away, the first screams from inside started.

* * *

_(The Next Day)_

"Alright Ruby, any pain or soreness in the ribs?" DuFrense asked.

Ruby sighed in annoyance. "No," she replied, although there was some, but it was barely there.

"Any irritation in your throat?"

"Just a light tickle." DuFrense made another note on his Scroll and some sort of hum.

"Okay, can you lift up your shirt so I can examine your cuts?" He said gently. Ruby closed her eyes and rolled up the gown, her mind blanking to avoid thinking about why she had those cuts in the first place… or the last time someone looked at her without a shirt. "Mostly healed, but there will be scaring which shouldn't affect you in any major way." He said as he looked around her skin.

"I know," Ruby said. _I've seen them enough times and healed enough to know that._ She hadn't been able to sneak some white Dust since there were so many people in the ward now.

DuFrense frowned slightly but schooled his expression. "Now then, is there anything you want to discuss? Anything at all."

_Oh many things, but nothing I'd actually talk about, or with you,_ Ruby thought sarcastically. She had woken up feeling dead inside, remembering the night before when her mom… no, not her mom, met her. _My own mom rejected me. I reached out and she smacked me away. I want her… I _need _her so bad, but I can't. She doesn't see _me. _She's not my mom, but… I can't help it; I just want to hug her and hold her tightly, and to have her hold me. _

She instead shook her head, keeping silent.

Doc looked at her with a peculiar eye, but refrained from commenting. "Okay. So how about we get you using your legs again? Do you feel like walking around a bit?"

Ruby nodded again, "Sure." She slid her legs off to the side and slowly got off the bed. From her excursions to get White Dust, she could now stand and walk on her own, but she still felt stiff.

She looked over and saw Doc frowning outright. He looked up and met her eyes. "You've been getting out of bed on your own haven't you?"

Ruby just shrugged. "What?"

"You got out way to easily for someone who been in bed rest for ten days." He said.

"I needed to use the bathroom," Ruby reasoned.

"That's not it."

"What do you want from me?!" Ruby shot back.

"Whoa, hey, I'm not accusing you of anything," Doc defended himself.

"Let's just go," Ruby muttered, and started stretching out her legs and taking small steps to get her legs used to walking once again. When Doc reached out to help her, Ruby shoved his hand away. "I'm fine. I know how to use my legs," she snarked. Doc held up his hands in an 'okay fine' gesture and Ruby continued walking.

_I can walk. I know I can. I can run. I can run faster than the wind. Faster than anything. So why is walking so difficult? Why is everything difficult? Why doesn't anyone believe me? Sure Doc says he does, and Emerald and Neo… but I can still see the suspicion in their eyes... Well, less so in Neo._ She smirked bitterly_. I know when people are hiding things from me, or when they aren't being truthful with themselves. They say one thing but I can tell they don't mean it. I just never was able to call them on it because I had an image that I_ liked. _But here… all they see is her, even if they know it's not. At least Ro-_Torchwick_ admits that he doesn't believe me. Whoa, that was weird. _

Distracted by her own thoughts she started to take longer steps. She didn't hear the sudden warning from Doc until it was too late. She walked face first into somebody. Giving a little 'eep!' Ruby fumbled backwards until she regained her balance. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Ruby rushed to apologize to the person. He looked up and recognized the person, who looked a tad different. "Oh! Hi Velvet."

The rabbit Faunus had recovered quickly and had a small smile on her face until she saw who had run into her. Then her face turned to stone. "Rose."

Ruby froze at the hated name, then sighed and closed her eyes in irritation. "I'm not her," she said, tired of trying to defend herself. "Rose is a different person, someone from _this_ world. I'm not from here."

"What? That's unbelievable and you know it. Of course you're Rose. I _remember_. You were there trying to shoot Yatsu for helping me escape from Beacon."

"That. Wasn't. Me." Ruby insisted, trying to keep her temper down. It was only partly working.

"It's true you know," Doc said, coming up behind Ruby. "This isn't the girl we know. She changed."

"Oh sure she changed, and once she's done with her mission, she'll change right back." Velvet accused, ignoring Doc's attempts to interrupt her. She turned back to Ruby. "Why are you here. What are you doing?"

Ruby's eyes flashed. Repressed emotion, anger chief among them, rose to the surface. Her Aura flared, outlining her body in a red light. "Oh gee, what does it look like? Like I'm trying to recover from something? I'm standing here in a hospital gown, trying to get used to walking again. And this is after I got dumped in this world by a Dust accident and tortured by the people that I considered my friends and family; people I could trust. I was beaten, cut, stabbed, tortured, shot full of who knows how many drugs, r-ra-raped, healed and then tortured some more while being disoriented and confused, all within a day of arriving here. All the while protesting that I'm not this Rose person, the other me. And then after I get 'rescued' everyone still thinks I'm her and push me away. And then my _own_ _mom_ shows up and practically says that she wishes I was dead and walks away. So yeah, there's a reason why I'm here.

"Or maybe there isn't?" Ruby realized. "If all you are going to do is treat me like this, then maybe I'm better off on my own, trusting no one, trying to find a way back by myself. Is that what you're trying to do? Are you all trying to push me so far that I snap? Are you trying to make me into this Rose by treating me like her? So what is it? What do you want from me?!"

She had the feeling of being x-rayed from behind and turned around, fist swinging. She caught Doc in the shoulder and he staggered back slightly. "Stop that!" She screamed. "I'm tired of being analyzed! Tired of being treated like a ticking bomb! I've told you over and over I'm not Rose! What more do you want from me?!"

At this two White Fang guards stormed in with their guns pointed at her. "Ro-Ruby! Please! Calm down," DuFrense tried. It was hopeless. Ruby had passed into the realm of fight or flight, old memories of the White Fang coming at her. She didn't have her sweetheart with her, and since her body and Semblance was literally made for speed, there was only one option.

She tapped into her Semblance and breezed past the two guards, the world slowing down around her, everyone moving in slow motion. Ruby burst through the doors and had to jump and run on the wall to avoid slamming into it, taking a sharp left. She had no idea where she was going, just _away_. After what felt like minutes, but really only one at most, she found herself in a dimly lit storage closet, locking it behind her.

_This isn't fair_, she thought as she paced._ I didn't want this. I just wanted to be a huntress, to do the right thing, to fight Grimm. Not… all this. How can a world be so wrong? So destructive? Why did it have to be me? I don't want to be here. I want Yang back. I want my sister. I want my dad. I want Uncle Qrow. I want… mom. She's here, but she's not. She left me… again. I just want to be a normal girl with… normal knees. Heh._ She couldn't help it; a small chuckle escaped her lips. It grew into a laugh and she didn't stop. She laughed until she couldn't breathe anymore, as tears streaked down her face again. When she paused for breath she angrily wiped them away.

"Why do I keep crying all the time?" _I just want it to stop. _She sat down behind some boxes, utterly exhausted, just waiting for the inevitable when either someone found her or she worked up enough energy to leave on her own. The second option was looking highly unlikely. So she sat in the dim lighting, waiting for something. Anything to change.

* * *

"Damn it! I was hoping this wasn't going to happen!" DuFrense ranted back in the infirmary. Ruby had suddenly disappeared with a trail of red rose petals following her out of the door. By the time they followed, the petals had vanished by the second turn so they had no way of knowing where she was at the moment.

"What was that all about?" Velvet asked, confused.

"You don't know?... Oh wait. That's right, you don't," DuFrense said, realizing that belated fact. "Well, to make a long story short, what Ruby said was true. She is not Rose and has been tortured by the Hunters. It's a little unclear if she's from an alternate Remnant or not since I still can't get a good reading on her mind because she's still too emotionally unstable. But she's somewhat progressing so that's a plus, but meeting her not-mother last night might have done some damage though."

"… That was the longest short story I've ever heard," Velvet deadpanned.

DuFrense sighed, "Look, just get Neo, Emerald, and Mercury, and tell them to tell Roman to give Summer the data chip. She needs to see it."

"Sure…?" Velvet said confusedly as she walked out the door.

DuFrense sighed. "Well at least I have an idea of where our White Dust supplies have been going. Damn." He rubbed his face. _At this point I just want Ruby to get better so I won't have to deal with this. I'm a doctor not a psychiatrist. The only thing that might work is if she and her mother 'reunite'. Then I could tell for certain if her memories are real. At this point however, does it even care? Huhgh, I want a drink._

* * *

Roman saw Neo along with Mercury and Emerald coming up to him. "Oh no."

"Oh yes," Mercury said, dry humor in his voice.

"Look, I don't know whatever it is, but it's probably something I don't want to do and it's not worth it, alright? Just… go back to doing whatever it is you were doing before and we'll forget about this." Roman said, backing up.

"Ruby's gone missing," Emerald said.

Roman blinked. "Well that's just fan-tucking-fastic. How many did she kill?"

"No one. She apparently got angry over the fact that no one believed her completely and bolted," Mercury said. "No one has gotten in or out of the base so she's still inside somewhere."

"So why have you come to me then?" Roman warily asked.

"Velvet said that Doc told her to tell us to tell you to give Summer the data chip." Emerald said.

"… What?"

"You need to give Summer-" Mercury started, but Roman interrupted him.

"Yeah yeah, I got that. Just… why? What good will it do? That woman completely hates Ebony. If anything, getting those two together would just end up with one of them dead."

Neo tapped her foot to get their attention. _'Admit it, the info changed how you look at her. It will do the same for her. Let us do the talking since your people skills are so sub-par.' _

Roman threw his hands up in exasperation. "Fine, whatever. Let's get this over with. If she attacks it's not my fault."

* * *

There was a knock on the door, and she looked up from her Scroll, going over plans and schematics, troop and hunter movements and the like. "Yes?"

_"It's Emerald, can I come in?" _

Summer quirked an eyebrow and said, "Sure." _What does she want? _The two had conversed many times since Cinder brought her into the plan and were… not quite friends but close. Close enough that they could talk about semi-sensitive things.

The door opened and Summer's eyebrows rose further as more than just Emerald walked into the relatively small room. "You failed to specify if it was just you," Summer quipped, a hint of irritance in her voice. _I really don't want to deal with people right now. _

"Yeah, well, we're a special package deal for the moment," Mercury said.

"What is it? I have things I need to do," Summer said, gesturing to her Scroll.

"It's about Ruby," Emerald said.

Summer's eyes flashed. "I don't want to hear about her. She chose her path, as did I. We're nothing except enemies now." _I don't want to hear anything about her. _

"That may be, but you don't know how the situation has changed," Emerald started, but Neo pushed through, interrupting her.

_How did you find out about Ruby being here?_ She asked through her Scroll.

Summer narrowed her eyes. _What is she going on about?_ Neo was another of the few Summer could 'talk' to, but she didn't have Roman's ability to translate her body motions as much as he did. "I saw her face on a wanted poster. Some large amount of lien if she's brought back alive."

_And did you wonder why she made it onto those posters? _

Summer shrugged, feigning indifference. "I just figured she fucked up big time and was missing. Either that or you had managed to capture her in a fight."

Neo shook her head, an amused smile on her face. _'Nope.'_

Mercury spoke next. "She was actually being tortured in Beacon after some sort of Dust affected her. The best theory right now is that she's from an alternate Remnant and wound up here."

Summer blinked. _They're joking. They have to be._ "That's absurd. That sounds like something from a bad sci-fi movie."

"Well if you won't take our words for it," Roman finally spoke, which had to be some sort of record. He reached into his pocket and pulled out something, which he then tossed to Summer. It was a data chip, easily compatible with her Scroll. "Take a look at that. For some unknown reason, it has these three idiots-ow!-believing her story," Roman said, rubbing his arm where Neo hit it. "In _any_ case, the game has changed, but whether the piece has changed colors has yet to be seen. Doc still needs to run a full mind scan because she's been so fucked up in the head-OW!"

Summer eyed the chip with some suspicion. _This wouldn't be the first time we've been fed false information by Ozpin and Xiao Long. But this is the first time it's gotten this far._ "Are you sure this is real?"

"Aside from the fact that Emerald and I personally saw half of it? Yes," Mercury said. "It's what caused us to bust our cover and rescue her. Cinder already has the intel we need and probably has seen what's on that," he nodded to the chip. "And you know how she is."

Summer blinked in surprise. _Cinder saw this?... She knew. She had to have known._ Something clicked in her mind suddenly. _I was there! I was there when she got the call from Emerald and Mercury, in the room with her. I wondered why she got quiet…_ "Yes I do. And I will be asking about this when I see her next." She said, her tone causing some discomfort among the intruders.

"Look; watch it, don't watch it, whatever, just don't go tearing up the base," Roman said with all the subtlety of a battle-ax. "We can't afford you two going at it, alright?"

Summer growled at him, but nodded. "Fine. Now since you all won't leave me alone, if I say I'll read this will you go away?"

"Good enough for me," Emerald said.

"Fine, whatever. Now leave!" Summer loudly said. Roman was the first to go, followed by Mercury and Emerald, then lastly Neo. Summer eyed them all as they exited.

She didn't catch it when Neo looked back, flickered and disappeared right before the door closed.

"For the love of Monty," Summer muttered now that she was alone. She held up the data chip in her hand and looked at it. _So, apparently you're supposed to change my mind about Rose, huh? That won't happen. It_ can't _happen. I can't afford to think like that. It took me so long to get over her the first time; I just can't get my hopes up if _She's_ actually changed. I won't. This will change nothing. She's not my daughter and will never be anymore… Ruby…_

_"Ma! Ma-ma!"_

_…._

_"Go away! Leave! Youwr not my mom!" _

_…._

_"…Mom?"_

Her silver eyes blinked open from when she had closed them at some point. Growling at herself in anger for her treacherous thoughts and memories, she punched the bed in frustration. "Damn it all!" She inserted the chip into the slot and loaded up the files. 'Ruby or Rose?' 'Dust Accident &amp; Grimm Pit' 'Interrogation' and 'Torture' all appeared as new files.

_Fine, let's get this over with. _She tapped the first one, her inner conflict only just in the opening stages.

* * *

_This is just a quick thing we're writing to provide some background to what's on this file…_

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**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

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**Sorry for the cliff hanger, but don't despair! I'll probably have another chapter up either late November or early December since I'm riding a wave of creativity and am not swamped with finals yet. **

**Shout out to JimmyHall24 for helping me by giving me ideas with this chapter!**

**Anyway, I need to get to class, so don't forget to R.R.F.F (Read, Review, Favorite, Follow)**

**-OrangeGalen**


	11. Please Don't Leave Me Again

**Well, it's been a long time coming this chapter. I started it, then edited it, then got distracted with other stories, then got sick and only really touched this in the last couple days. This might be one of the hardest chapters I've written just because I wanted to get it just right (the first two scenes in other words). Some of you may know what's coming, most will find out the hard(er) way by reading, but you've suspected. And now I'm delivering and promising. Fun fact, this is the second longest chapter so far (excluding Author's notes and such). **

**In other news, this story has reached 101 Favorites! Holy F-! Honestly I thought this story would get lost in RWBY fan fiction annals, but it's slowly moving up. Thanks to _Jin Rummy_ for getting this story to triple digits, and _Hibiwiki_ for that 101st Fave. **

**In other-other news, how about team STRQ (Stark)... Eh? Eh? Eh... I was chuckling to myself when Qrow said that, thinking about this story. I honestly thought it would be QRTS (Quartz) instead, but I'm happy with it. **

**Anyway, I've been going on for too long. Here's Chapter 11.**

Edit: 1/15/16- Changed the cover. I remastered the original color pencil and ink drawing using a drawing program.

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

_"Now then, we're all alone. Let's start from the beginning from where we left off in the Commander's office. This all started with a Dust accident. Can you describe what happened in detail?"_

* * *

_"What is your name?" _

_"Wha? What's this all abou-"_

_"Answer the question!" _

_"Eep! Ruby Rose!" _

_"Date of birth?" _

_"Um, June 26__th__, 1274, New Vytal calendar." _

_"Biological mother?" _

_"Summer Rose." _

_"Adoptive mother?" _

_"What? I've never had an adoptive mother. I've been living with Taiyang Xiao Long and Uncle Qrow."_

* * *

_"Because I like doing this; it's fun! And this is perfectly me. If you had done any research into us like the good fucking spy you should be, you would know that." _

_"Rose, Rose Rose Rose, you should know better than to throw a punch at me of all people… but I love it when you're feisty. Makes it much more fun to break you."_

* * *

_"… you are not Ruby Rose. You are an impostor, a fake, and I intend to find out who sent you and how you got here."_

* * *

_"But even then, it boils down to your identity. You aren't Rose, even though you claim to be. Delusions of grandeur aside, you wouldn't even hold a candle to what my Mistress can do. She's… intense, and I doubt that you have the same drive she does. You aren't adaptable or cunning enough, and nowhere near manipulative or threatening…" _

_ "Sounds… Sounds like she's your hero."_

* * *

_"Oh, don't pass out now, we're just starting to have fun. Get behind her, let's see if she likes both of us at once."_

* * *

_"Should I pull out your tongue? No, you still need to talk. Toenails? Might be fun… Oh I know! I'll cut open your skin, starting from your fingers. How does that sound?" _

_"N-no… please…" _

_"Well then, just admit to being a spy and then we can move to the really fun stuff." _

_"I'm… not… a spy. Ruby. I'm Ruby."_

_"Tsk. Disappointing." _

_"AHHHHHHHHH!"_

* * *

_"Well, that was a good stress reliever. I hope I can do this again; it was nice. My team would probably like a turn, so you might see them later if you're still, y'know, alive. Though that might not stop some people…"_ The hunter in training walked out of the cell door and then the video stopped, reaching the end of what was recorded.

Summer stared at the screen, the Scroll reverting back to the background and then turning black, going into power save from being idle for so long. Her mind had gone blank, unable to comprehend what she had watched. Several hours of video had played and Summer had no idea what to think, or what to feel.

Slowly her mind reset itself, little things returning, like how to breathe properly, feeling how dry her mouth was, how stiff her back was. Then she slowly started to recall what caused her to go nearly comatose.

_Wh… what did I just watch? Why, how did this happen? Was that really the same girl? Did they really… do all that?... They did that to her? Oh Oum, I'm going to be sick!_ Suddenly processing everything at once, Summer lurched over to a small wastebasket and vomited what was in her stomach, sickened by what they did to her, even if it was Ru-_Rose_.

Summer felt a pair of hands suddenly hold back her long black and red tipped hair, massaging her scalp. However she didn't react since she was still trying to get her heaving stomach under control, trying to repress the video. A minute later, moaning slightly, she turned her head and saw the designer white and pink jacket with the brown pants. She knew who it was.

Summer grunted. "I thought you had left earlier," the words sounding off due to the leftover stomach acid taste.

She could feel Neo shrugging. _'I stayed behind.'_

Summer groaned and slowly stood up, grabbing a rag to wipe her mouth. _Neo and her illusions, fooling even me._ "How long?"

_'The entire time,'_ came her sympathetic response.

"Why?" She asked as she now fumbled around for a water bottle, wanting to get the taste of bile out of her mouth. She unscrewed the cap and took a swig, then decided to hell with it and spit it in the trash. _I'll have to take it out anyway. Really? I'm thinking about this now? _

Neo had a small smile and rubbed her shoulder. Summer really didn't get that one, but it was something to do with support. _Neo wanted to support me… after watching that?_ "Thank you, but… it wasn't necessary."

Neo shrugged and did another gesture, and at Summer's confused look, typed, _Not then, but now that it's over you need to talk about it._

"What's there to talk about?" Summer said irritably. "This could all be an elaborate hoax… to get me-_us_ to trust her." Summer cursed her slip, knowing that Neo caught it.

_Do you really think they'd go that far? Almost destroying the person they/we thought she was to get at us? No, that was too far. She's not the same girl you knew, the one that denied that you were her mother. _

"They might," Summer said, her protest sounding weak even to herself. Neo just stared at her, her eyes both brown. Summer shrunk a bit at the diminutive woman's unyielding stare, and looked away. "They might." Summer repeated, her voice hardening, becoming more stubborn. "This is all just a ploy, an unexpected move by Ozpin…"

She was cut off when Neo suddenly slapped her in the face. "_What the hell was that for!_"

Neo glared at her. _'You're being an idiot.' _

"How am I the idiot?!" Summer shouted.

_Because you're seeing everything but the obvious! You're being as stubborn as Roman. You're avoiding the fact that she's from a different world! SHE CAN'T BE ROSE! _

"I DON'T WANT HER TO BE ROSE!" Summer shouted back, but then realized what she said. Neo stared at her in surprise. "I-I mean…" Summer flipped her hood up to hide her face. _Why did I say that? Why? That didn't even make sense… right?_

Summer felt Neo's hands go on either side of her face and turned her around so they met eye to eye, a question on her face. _'What did you mean then?'_

Summer tried to turn away, but Neo held firm. Frustrated with her silent friend, Summer forcefully broke away from her grasp and stood up facing the wall. _I don't want to believe that she's different. It would make things easier if she was just Rose, the same girl for ten years that's been the plaything of Xiao Long, Branwen, Ozpin… molding her… _"I don't want to believe that she's different." Summer said in a soft, slow voice.

"It would be easier for me… for _us_ to continue thinking she's a bad guy. That this is all a trick. We could get rid of her and have one less enemy to fight… A better chance… It would be better, less confusion. No conflicting feelings…"

There was a typing, and then a screen was almost shoved in her face. _So why don't you? It would be so easy right now. She's broken, easy pickings. It wouldn't take much. She probably wouldn't put up a fight, especially if it's you. You said it yourself, she's not your daughter, so why don't you?_

Summer turned around horrified, and seeing Neo's hungry grin was frightening. "Because she's-!" She cut herself off.

_She's what?_ Neo asked with a triumphant glint in her differently colored eyes.

Summer turned around again. _Damnit_, _don't cry, don't break down now._ "Because she's still my daughter…" Neo remained 'silent', letting Summer talk without interruption. "Even after all this time, some part of me still thinks of her as my daughter, still wants her as my daughter, to have her back as my Little Rose. The bright spot in my life." The words kept tumbling out; Summer was unable, or unwilling, to stop. "After Beacon, I just wanted to live. Occasionally hunt the Grimm, the true enemy of humans and Faunus. But when Taiyang approached me that night, I thought about having a family. I wanted to be with him since my third year and he knew it. I knew it was wrong; he was married and had a kid already, but... I hesitated. In one moment of weakness, he took advantage of that… One night of wild passion… And then I had Ruby. I foolishly thought that I could keep her safe; keep her unspoiled innocence of the world.

"But then she turned against me, corrupted by the whispers of Xiao Long and his _fucking_ _wife_ Raven, prodded by her half sister, all condoned by Ozpin. She told me to go away, that I wasn't her mom. My own daughter… I gave birth to her, raised her… It hurt, more than anything I've felt. That day was the final nail in the coffin. Ruby died and a blackened Rose was born. I just didn't want to see it, to believe it. Even after… I still watched. Hoping. Do you know what it's like to see your own daughter turn into a monster? Hope died a bit every day since then… but it was still there, no matter how much I _knew_ it wasn't coming back. I just wanted to_ stamp it out_, to move on! I thought I did…

"But then _she_ shows up, weak and different, saying she's not her, but a different her. And then this… damn video," Summer growled, holding up her Scroll, "didn't help my thoughts at all."

Summer paused, catching her breath. "I couldn't…" Summer whispered. "I haven't spoken to her in ten years. Part of me still remembers… feels like she's my baby girl… a large part of me. But… I've read what she's done, and seen it first hand… the carnage… I can't put it aside long enough to see the other. It would be so easy to deny that she's different because of that Dust accident, and pretend nothing has changed. It _was_ easy just to push her away, not get close to her."

Neo scooted closer. _She says she's from an alternate world. _

Summer laughed and sobbed at the same time. "So she's not my daughter but another Summer's daughter? That would be easier to believe than if she had a change of heart."

Neo gave her a look that said, _'So why don't you?' _

Summer wiped her face from the tears. "I guess… I don't want to reawaken that hope, that we could be mother and daughter finally... I don't want to get hurt again, to reopen that pain for a chance that might exist. And if she is actually from another world, then she'll eventually have to go back to her own family, her mom… So either way I'll have to let her go eventually. What's the point? And I doubt she even wants to see me now after what I said," Summer chuckled dejectedly.

_Well, you'll have your chance… now actually. _

"Why?"

_She got upset and ran off, but she's still in the base. We just can't find her._ _Oh, nobody died, just so you know._

Summer sighed, split between wanting to help and leaving things be. "And because of my Semblance, you want me to go looking for her in places you can't get to."

Neo nodded. _'Basically.'_

Silver eyes closed. _I don't want to do this. I don't want to be crushed in the end. But… I want this chance, no matter how small or short… But I'm scared I'll be wrong. I don't want to be wrong… God damnit, fuck it. _"Fine, I'm going." She said finally, standing up.

Neo smiled and had a look in her eyes that said, _'It's about time.'_

"Don't push it. I'm going now before I loose it," Summer said, then walked out her door, glancing left and right before looking up at the air vents. Willing her Semblance to activate, she turned into a multitude of white rose petals and carried herself into the vents. _One thing I learned about sneaking,_ she thought, always go for the vents. _You never know what you'll hear snooping around._

* * *

It was the quiet sniffling, the kind that is almost inaudible to hear, that caught her attention. The vents make things echo in weird ways, loud sounds are muffled; small sounds creep their way around. And this particular sound was the one that caught Summer's attention. Calling it a gut hunch, Summer followed the sound and quietly slipped between the grates into a decent sized supply closet. She swirled around in petal form before solidifying into her body, letting her get a glimpse of the person crying.

It was Rose.

Or Ruby.

Summer almost growled aloud, hating herself for still being undecided. _Monty, I hate feeling like this._ But she kept quiet, not wanting Ruby/Rose to be startled too early. She peaked through a shelf to see the object of her internal turmoil. She wasn't curled up in a ball like Summer suspected she would be, she was just sitting on the ground with her back leaning against the wall. Almost silent sniffs came from her as her body shook slightly.

What were the most disturbing were her eyes. Those same silver eyes that Summer saw whenever she looked into a mirror. Those eyes now had a look, a stare in them that alarmed her and frightened her, one that she had only seen on people who had no reason to continue.

Those eyes had a lack of life in them, as if one had succumbed to the inevitability of the world. She had seen it on Hunters that had been out in the field for years. While the Hunters could control their Grimm, there was only so much Black Dust at a time before the individual ran out. And the hordes of Grimm still rampaged outside the kingdom; no matter how many Grimm were enslaved, there were still more. Death and sorrow clung to those Hunters and wore them down, until they just didn't care what happened. They would do the motions, but _they just didn't care_. About themselves, about others, about the kingdoms or Remnant.

That was the look Ruby Rose had on her face.

It jolted Summer in her core to see that expression. On her daughter's face_. I never thought I would see something like that on… her. Gah Summer, what do you want? Make up your mind! _

Summer started walking around the shelf, making sure her footsteps were audible enough. She heard Ruby shuffle a bit in reaction, but when she turned the corner, Ruby hadn't moved. She just looked up and met her eyes, silver to silver.

Ruby looked up and saw the living ghost come up to her. She gave Summer a doleful smile. "Come to kill me now?"

Something flashed in Summer's eyes and after a moment she asked, "Do you want to die?" She immediately winced for some reason and shook her head. "No I haven't," she stated.

Ruby closed her eyes. "Now you're lying as well. Why? Why now?"

Summer replied, "I saw the videos of what they did to you." Finally Summer saw a reaction in Ruby's eyes, but it was from fear of the memory. Ruby curled up again, her voice shaky.

"No, no. Stop it. I don't want to remember. Stop it." Ruby started breathing irregularly.

"Okay, okay, you don't have to remember," Summer urgently said to calm her. "Focus on the here and now. Breathe." After a few moments all the tension left Ruby and she slumped down.

However, Ruby glared up at her now. "So you've come to torment me instead, huh? Is that it?"

"No," Summer shook her head, "no it isn't… I-I guess…" Summer sighed and sat down across from Ruby, who was eyeing her with unrestrained suspicion. _If there's a time for honestly Summer, then now's the time. _"I just want to understand."

_Huh? _"Huh?" Out of all the answers Ruby expected, that wasn't one of them.

"I… this is hard… I want to… I'm sorry," Summer stammered out. Ruby frowned in confusion and Summer clarified, "About yesterday. I didn't know the full story of what happened and… I still don't. Are you Rose or Ruby? Are you from another world? I don't know who you are."

Ruby sighed. "I've already told you, but nobody believes me." _I'm tired of this. I just want this to end. _Ruby closed her eyes tiredly.

"Then explain it to me." Silver eyes shot open, meeting her not-mother's own. Summer sighed, "You have to understand, for fifteen, close to sixteen, years I've had to watch my Ruby grow up and become the monster she is today: Rose, the one everyone is afraid of. Then you show up claiming to be her but not her from another Remnant…"

Sumer sighed again. "I'm actively trying not to jump to conclusions right now. I'm trying to give you a chance… What I'm saying is nobody's asked you who _you_ are, even me. If-if you are from a different world, then everything must be different for you to be this way." Her mouth speaking as fast as her brain was going, the ideas kept coming. "What is your Remnant like? What are the people like? Who's the same and who isn't?..." Summer hesitated in asking the next question. "What's your family like?... We don't know. I don't-" She cut herself off. _Great, now I'm rambling. Good job Summer. _"And… I want to find out if… you… are the daughter I could of had."

Ruby was speechless. _I… I guess I never thought of it from their perspective. They've been fighting me, Rose, for a long time. No wonder why they were suspicious. And mo… Summer had to watch her grow up like that… Do_ I _want to give her a chance?_ Even as she thought the question she knew the answer.

"So…" Ruby started. "What do you want to know?"

"Huh?" Summer said, echoing Ruby previously.

"Ask me."

Summer blinked and then a small smile played across her lips. "Well… you are from an alternate Remnant, right?"

Ruby sighed, but nodded, "Yeah." _I've been asked that enough times. _

"And it was caused by that Red-Black Dust crystal you used? You being sent here I mean. It switched you two around?"

"As far as I can tell," Ruby answered, then something occurred to her. "Wait. That's one major difference! I've never even heard of Black Dust before, but it was brought up a lot here. What does it do?"

Summer was intrigued, "You don't have Black Dust?" Upon Ruby's negative shake, Summer continued, "I suppose that would be why your word is so bright… You want to know then?" Ruby nodded.

"Well… Black Dust lets one control a Grimm as long as you have enough willpower and concentration. It first made an appearance around the time the Great War was about to wrap up. Some crazy person made it up and, as you could imagine for the fledgling Hunter schools, this was a major boon, and a source of irony. Turning our greatest enemy to our side to fight its own kind. But… it changes you. Makes you more prone to violent actions… White Dust can counter that, but not many bother."

"So that's why everyone was… so cruel," Ruby muttered, sobering up.

Summer nodded, "Partially. I would guess that Beacon does things differently from the worlds?"

"Yeah… it's like… normal to do _those_ things for them. And they enjoyed it!" Ruby shouted. "It's disgusting."

"Indoctrination, brainwashing, led by Ozpin," Summer summed up. "They make you do those things and you either learn to enjoy it, enjoyed it already, or you leave or die."

"Like Velvet," Ruby reasoned.

"I guess I was one of the odd ones, that stuck through the entire four years but wasn't majorly changed. Probably because I purged myself using White Dust more than other people did."

"Were you the leader of your Team?" Ruby asked, interested.

"Yep. Me, Taiyang Xiao Long, Raven Branwen and her brother, Qrow forming Team STRQ (Stark)."

"I'm a team leader too! We form team RWBY… and yes that does cause a bit of confusion," Ruby said, making Summer laugh. Ruby blinked, forgetting what she was about to say. _She has a beautiful laugh,_ Ruby realized. _Is this what my mom sounded like?_

"Ruby?" Ruby's attention came back.

"Yes?"

"You spaced out a bit," Summer pointed out.

"Oh right, sorry. I was just thinking…" Ruby trailed off. She forced her mind back to what she was going to ask. "Who's Raven? I know everyone else, but not her," Ruby asked.

"Raven? She's Xiao Long's wife. Yang's mother." Ruby's eyes grew big. _Yang… maybe I can find out something, to find _your_ mom. This may be what you need. _

Summer looked at Ruby in puzzlement. "You… didn't know that?"

Ruby shook her head. "No. Yang's mom, in my world, left before I was born. Yang is a little obsessed with finding her," Ruby chuckled, remembering Junior's club, or what was left of it.

"So I- her- raised you?" Summer asked tentatively.

"Yeah, for a while… until…" Ruby went silent, but her eyes were moving around, not looking at Summer.

Summer felt something grow cold. _I know that look. _"What happened?" She almost didn't want to know the answer. So many things could have happened.

"You… went out on a mission," Ruby started, tears forming in her eyes, "but then… you never came back."

Summer gasped a breath in. _That's better than some of the things I was thinking off,_ she thought, but then she immediately felt terrible for thinking that. _She lost her mom as well… So that's why she took my rejection so hard, _Summer realized. _She's not the only one wanting a family… _

"_'Thus, kindly I scatter.'_ That's what's written on your tombstone," Ruby gloomily said.

"How… how long ago did she die?" Summer asked quietly.

"About ten years ago. I didn't know her that well, but I miss her," Ruby said. "I still visit her a couple times a year." Summer suddenly had a mental picture of Ruby in a red cloak standing on the edge of a snowy cliff, talking to a white gravestone.

"And then I showed up much like you did," Summer said, trailing off.

Ruby chuckled without any humor. "I guess we both overreacted."

"I'm sorry Ruby," Summer said, causing Ruby to look up. "It's mostly my fault. I… was unprepared for the emotional turmoil and handled it in the worst way. I lashed out at what I thought who you were to hide my pain."

Ruby sighed, "It's understandable. I might have done the same thing…"

They both fell into a silence. Neither one knew what to say next. Until…

"Can… can I-" Ruby started but stopped. _No, it's stupid. There's no way it will happen. _

"Please, anything I can do I want to," Summer said, meaning it wholeheartedly.

"It's, this is silly. You lost your daughter; I lost my mother, yet here we are. From different realities."

"Inside a storage closet," Summer said amusedly. Ruby cracked a grin at that.

"I guess…" She grew silent again. "I just, I want… we both want…"

Summer, without hearing everything, scooted closer to Ruby and just held her. Ruby clutched her desperately, both of them now crying. "I think we both know what we want. I… I know I can't take the place of your Summer… but… maybe, in the future…"

"If- no, when I find a way back to my world… I won't go until I find a way to bring you too… M-Mom." Ruby sobbed. Summer started crying in earnest, finally hearing what she dreamed of for years.

"Ruby." The Roses held each other until the tears dried. Their scents came through their noses. _She smells like roses,_ they both thought.

"So… since I've been gone from your life, and you from mine… maybe we can start over?"

"Sounds fine to me."

"So, tell me about your life. I want to know what I missed."

And so they talked through the night and into the next day. They talked about the differences in their worlds, the people they met, what sort of crazy adventures they got into, but most importantly, they got to know each other. They may have been from separate realities, from different worlds, but in heart and soul, they were mother and daughter, reuniting after so long.

After all the words had run out, the two just sat there in silence. At least until both of their stomach rumbled in sync. Both of them gave embarrassed grins on their faces. "I guess we're both hungry," Ruby said.

Summer checked her scroll, "Well considering it is a little after 6:30… in the morning. You gave everyone a worry when you ran off," Summer said.

"Oh." There wasn't much Ruby could say for that.

"So how are you feeling? Any pain or soreness?"

"No, well except from sitting too long," Ruby admitted.

"I think you might have made a full recovery in my un-expert opinion," Summer said. _Mostly_, they both knew.

"So, can we get something to eat?"

"Sure… but I think you should change first," Summer said, giving Ruby a once over in her hospital gown.

"Yeah, I wish I was back in my hood now. It's been too long."

"Then let's get your gear. And some food."

"Sure… Mom?" Ruby said after a moment of hesitation.

"Yes?"

"Please… don't leave me again."

Summer enveloped her reclaimed daughter in a hug. "Never again."

* * *

"Tell us where the White Fang meet," came the unusually cold voice of Yang Xiao Long. "All of the places."

A bear Faunus was shackled to the wall and he was littered with bruises and slashes. A hole in his left had would make sure he could never use it again, and with him missing several toes, courtesy of Schnee, he'd always walk with a limp.

"I've told," _cough cough_, "you already, you fuckers. The building, the apartment, and the old abandoned theater. You can't beat any more out of me since I don't know any more," he chuckled. "Might as well kill me, eh?"

"Why do they always get so defiant towards the end?" Belladonna asked as she slinked out of the shadows.

"Because he still has hope, hope that his torment will end," Schnee said as she held up a burning red poker. The Faunus flinched back from it.

"Oh fuck, no more! Please! I don't know any more!" He screamed, panicked, weakly thrashing to escape the chains holding him to the wall; a far cry from the strength he demonstrated when he was captured.

"That, is most certainly, a lie," Schnee said, and shoved the poker against the stubs of his feet, cauterizing the open would, earning the three huntresses with a shriek of agony, and the smell of burnt flesh to add to the other odors that permeated the room. That scream was cut off when Xiao Long punched him in the gut, driving the air from his lungs.

"He doesn't understand that nobody leaves unless we allow it. And we don't." Xiao Long said as she cracked her knuckles loudly.

"Look, I don't know any more! We have separate cells! We barely interact! That's all I know!" The Faunus was now pleading, tears streaking down his face.

"What do you think; drugs, or remove his toenails?" Schnee asked.

"Why not both?" Belladonna rhetorically asked.

"Good point." Schnee went over and grabbed a syringe and a wicked looking bladed clamp. She handed the syringe to Belladonna, "Half dose this time. We still need him coherent."

"For now anyway," Belladonna muttered, but took it anyway after holding it up to the light to see what it was.

Xiao Long stepped back and waited for the other two members of her team to work their magic. _Didn't think I'd actually miss her, but damn it isn't as fun without Rose here. Now that's a work of art. _

Schnee had just put the clamp on the Faunus' middle toe, earning a trickle of blood, when her Scroll went off, putting a halt to all of their festivities. Growling a bit, she answered. "Yes, Professor Goodwitch?"

_"Miss Schnee, Team RWBY is requested to go to the Commander's office at your earliest convenience." _That of course meant, right now.

"Of course ma'am, we're on our way," Schnee replied and closed her Scroll. She turned to the bear Faunus, "Well, seems like you get a bit of a break now. When we return, you better hope you have more answers for us." Looking at Xiao Long and Belladonna, she said, "We're needed in the Commander's office, let's go."

Belladonna tossed the syringe back on the tray in a huff and Schnee took off the clamp. The three of them exited, leaving a sobbing wreak of a man behind them.

Beacon was quiet for it being in the middle of the day, but it made sense. Most of the students were out on missions hunting down rebels and other criminals as per the Commander's orders… just shy of two weeks ago.

And the trio of huntresses were currently in their 'down' part of the operation. Sure they busted several rebel meeting points and killed most of those in there, they hadn't actually gotten any closer to their main goal: find the impostor Ruby Rose and bring her back to Beacon. Schnee had started creating another Red-Black Dust crystal, but as it was before, it was taking a while with careful measurements and timing.

So even though they had a good success rate, they were still failing. Hence why they got pulled from the field.

They reached the top floor and they all exited the elevator, moving to the center of the room before in sync kneeling. "Team RWBY, reporting as requested, Sir," Schnee announced.

The ticking of the giant clock was the only sound before the scraping of a chair was heard. "I find myself in a conundrum with you three," Ozpin said as he walked around his desk, cane taping on the floor. "You all are considered to be the most aspiring Huntresses this Academy has had for years, yet recently your actions in the field have been somewhat… wanting. Sure you complete your missions and objectives, but you're making slips of judgment, poor coordination, and hindering yourselves and the world in the process." The three girls wisely chose to stay silent.

"But I suppose it's understandable, given the nature of your goal, to capture someone that looks like one you knew and have some emotional ties to, be it positive or otherwise.

"Stand." The three girls stood and faced Supreme Commander Ozpin, who was leaning against the front of his desk.

"Now, I have made my decision. I may be the leader of Remnant, but I am also the Headmaster of this school, and therefore must look out for my students. While Miss Schnee has done an admirable job of leading RWBY so far, there was a reason why Miss Rose was decided to be the leader. For this, I have decided that you will need… a more experienced hand when going up against the White Fang." Ozpin gestured behind them and they turned.

There was a woman standing behind them that they hadn't noticed. She was colored red and black, with a shallow cut black dress, a red girdle-belt and gauntlets, with thigh length boots. She also had some object hanging off of the belt that vaguely resembled Grimm pelt. Lastly, she had a large sheath with a sword inside of it, having a visible rotary Dust chamber as part of the sheath.

In her hand was a half Grimm mask that would go over the right side of her face if it were on **(OG: Phantom of the Opera style)**. Schnee and Belladonna blinked, looking from the woman to Xiao Long. If Xiao Long's hair was black, or the woman's hair was blond, then they could have been looking in a mirror.

"Oh, hey mom," Xiao Long said.

"Yang," she greeted. WB blinked. _Mom? This is Xiao Long's mom?_ Even though she had a smile on her face, she exuded an aura of an apex predator, much like Rose could do on a bad day.

"Ladies," Ozpin said, getting their attention, "this is Raven Branwen-Xiao Long. For the time being, she'll be leading RWBY in your search for the White Fang and Ruby Rose as an expert Huntress."

"Oh man, this is gonna' be great," Xiao Long said, eager to get going now that her mother was working with them.

"Indeed," Raven said. "We have a lot to talk about."

"Sir," Belladonna asked respectfully, "are we to not engage any of those Ember Rebels?" She noticed that he seemed focused on her former allegiance.

Ozpin shook his head. "While eliminating them when you find them remains a standing order, it takes less precedence now. Our agent inside the group has confirmed that there has been no sighting of Rose in the compound that mob is using; unfortunately, due to special circumstances, our agent is unable to disclose the location or the leader's name. But we are getting closer to finding them."

"So that just leaves the Fang then," Schnee deduced.

"Correct," Raven added, putting him her knowledge. "They have been stirred up from the inside about something, right about the time Rose was liberated. While I haven't heard anything outright, their de-facto leader, Torchwick, seems to be concerned about someone he has right now. Three guesses who that is and the last two don't count."

"So," Ozpin said, "as of this moment, team RWBY is under the leadership of Raven, coincidentally completing the team name again. You are to follow her instructions as, if not better than, you would follow your team leader's. Tomorrow, your hunt begins. Now I believe you three were in the middle of something? Why don't you lead Raven down so she may give you some pointers."

"Yes Sir," the three girls exclaimed, bowing. Raven gave a nod and followed WBY out of the office.

"So mom, anything interesting happen that we may have missed?" Xiao Long asked as they walked back to the interrogation cells.

Raven rolled her red eyes in amusement. "Always. Your Uncle got in a bit of a tussle with some giant brute of a Faunus who wielded a chainsaw sword of all things. If it weren't for his White Fang groupies busting in and setting fire to the place, he would have had him."

"Sounds interesting."

They talked a little bit, with Schnee and Belladonna mostly staying silent until they reached the cell. The bear Faunus inside shrunk back as much as he could when the door opened.

"Told you we would come back," Schnee said as she walked in.

"I- I-"

"Did you rethink your position at all?" Belladonna asked, prowling closer like a seductress about to take a bite out of her prey.

"I-I- don't, I haven't, don't," he stuttered.

"Hmm, a pity then," Belladonna slinked back and looked to Raven. "Do you want us to start off where we left off?"

"Of course," Raven nodded. "It'll be interesting to see how techniques have changed." She backed up and leaned against the wall, uncaring of the dried blood on it.

Schnee picked up the same clamp from before. "So, which toe was I about to de-nail?"

His agonizing screams were blocked from echoing throughout Beacon by the soundproof walls, keeping his torture inside the small cell.

* * *

"So this is it?"

"Yep. Oh look, they fixed that rip, how nice of them."

"That looks like Neo's work… _That's_ your weapon?"

"Behold my sweetheart! Crescent Rose!" _Shwish-chick clank clunk. _"Oh I missed you!"~

"Dear Monty, it's like looking in a mirror when I was your age. We both were weapon fanatics."

"I think the correct term should be 'are'".

"... You're not wrong."

"I'm going to get changed now… Mom? What's wrong?"

"You still have this? The cloak?"

"I would never trade it for anything."

"Let's… Hurry up and then we can eat."

"Okay!"~

* * *

"It's been all night, where the hell are they?" Roman growled as he rubbed his hand against his face. The past couple nights hadn't been restful for him as he'd been thinking about many things, Rose mostly prominent in his thoughts.

Neo, however, was suspiciously perky this morning, having a small smirk as a constant expression on her face. Roman finally got fed up with her expression. "You know something, don't you?" He accused.

Neo pointed to herself and made an innocent face. _'Who? Me?'_

"Yes you. It's just like you've had two bowls of ice cream. And double the chocolate syrup."

_'I don't know what you're talking about,'_ Neo shrugged, that smirk growing just a smidgen larger.

Roman growled again and was about to retort when two things crossed his mind: Neo's smirk suddenly grew into a full blown smile as she stared over his shoulder, and there was a sudden silence in the ramshackle mess hall. Considering there were only a few early birds (sometimes literally) that wasn't saying much, but it was the sudden change in the air that came with it.

Knowing he was going to regret it, he turned around. What he saw was something he was never going to forget.

Two cloaked figures, one in red, the other in white, were walking side by side each with a small plate in their hands of food. They looked like mirror images of the other, except the one in red was shorter. The one in red said something and the one in white chuckled, eyes alight in mirth. It would have been a touching scene.

Except that Roman knew who both of them were.

"What. The. Hell," Roman muttered and Neo started giggling, further depriving him of sanity. Unable to take it he got up and went over to the pair, making sure he had Melodic Cudgel with him. The sudden movement behind him told him that Neo was joining him.

Summer was the first one to notice Roman's approach. "Hoo boy."

"What?" Ruby asked and then took a look. "Oh." She then took a quick bite out of the strawberry she had and wolfed it down fast.

By then Roman had got up to them, but Summer had stepped in front to confront him. "Is there a problem?"

Roman hesitated, recognizing it a little bit from Cinder's warning/question she likes to use. And as usual, he decided to bluster through it. "Uh, yeah, several. First off, where the hell were you," he pointed to Ruby behind Summer, who to her credit didn't flinch as she popped another strawberry in her mouth, "what happened after we left," he moved back to Summer, "how did you get your stuff," back to Ruby, "and how in the world are you two in the same area without trying to kill each other?" He finished looking at both of them.

Ruby and Summer looked at each other. "Should I answer or you?" Ruby asked.

"Why don't we answer the questions he gave us?" Summer said, a hint of mischief in her voice. Ruby soon returned the grin.

"Well, I ran away and locked myself in a supply closet," Ruby said.

"And I watched the videos, then Neo convinced me to find her, which I did," Summer picked up next.

"I got my stuff when M-Mom showed me where you keep things like that." Ruby. "And we both sorta'-…"

"-came to an understanding and decided to mend the broken bonds between us," Summer finished. "Or make new ones," she added as an afterthought. By then Neo was supporting her weight on her parasol because she was laughing so much, both silently and aloud.

Roman had alternated looking between the two as they spoke, and his eye was twitching. He turned and shouted, "Hey Perry, could you get Doc in here?"

"Sure thing," Perry said from across the room, and went to do just that.

Roman pinched the bridge of his nose, "There are so many things wrong with this. Ebony- or Red now I should say," he changed after looking at her outfit, "is still supposed to be under guard. We don't know what she'll do-"

"Yes we do," Summer cut him off, any friendliness gone from her voice. "I've talked to her… talked _with_ her all night Torchwick. And I'm doing what I've been missing out on for neigh on ten years. Being her mother. Ruby's been telling us the truth. We just didn't want to see it. Most of us anyway," she said, giving a grateful smile to Neo, which she returned.

Roman raised an eyebrow. "About that whole 'alternate reality' thing? Sorry Red, but I don't believe it."

"Don't call me that," Ruby suddenly said, her voice soft but cold.

Roman looked at her in confusion. "What, Red?"

Ruby grimaced. "That's what Torchwick from my world calls me. It's… ugh," Ruby shuddered. "Just… don't." She finished.

"So Ruby then?" Roman questioned.

Ruby grimaced again. _Wow, that sounded even worse than his nickname for me._ "On second thought, just call me Red." _Sounds less strange coming from him. _

"Whatever, now I _will_ call you Ruby," Roman grinned in satisfaction as Ruby groaned. "But I still don't believe it."

"Wow, you're even more stubborn than me," Summer said, in mock awe.

"What do I have to do?" Ruby asked, surprising Roman slightly. "When will you believe me? If my mom who, sorry mom, wanted me dead then now sees _me_, who I am now, then what do I have to do for you?"

Roman frowned in thought. After a moment of consideration, he said, "Until Doc get here and does a check up on you, I want to hear what your plans are right now. What do you want?"

Ruby stopped to think. _What do I want? I already have Mom, something that I never thought I would have, like ever. Getting home is a must… What do I?-_ An image of those burning red eyes floated through her mind, and then the memory of pain_. "I love it when you're feisty." No. NO. Not now Ruby. Get a grip. What do I want? _

"My main goal is to go back home, to my Remnant, and to take Mom with me," she said, smiling up at Summer, who returned it. "And… until then… I want to help you. The White Fang, the other group. Both of you. This isn't how it's supposed to be… And I want to make things right, to stop the Hunters." Those red eyes. Ruby clenched her slightly scarred fist. "And I want payback for what they did to me," she whispered, keeping her anger in check for the moment. "I want to look the monsters that are Rose's teammates in their eyes as I make them pay," she snarled. "They could have let me be, but they didn't. They enjoyed it like sickos."

"And what would you do if you had them right here, right now?" Roman questioned.

"I'd beat them up," Ruby stated with absolute clarity.

"And then what?"

"Huh?" She wasn't prepared for this scenario to continue.

"So you beat them up, good job. But what happens when they recover? Will you keep them imprisoned indefinitely? They'll just keep coming at you, and they won't just stop at 'beating you up', and there's even less chance of them having your turn-around change of heart. You should know that."

Ruby clenched her fist, both in anger and fear, for she knew all too well what they could do. "I know," she ground out.

"Roman, that's enough," Summer interrupted. _She doesn't know the harshness, what we have to do to survive yet. _"Ruby's on our side. That's what matters." _For now. She has yet to realize that not all monsters are black, with red eyes and white masks._

Roman glanced between the two of them. And then to Neo who was glaring at him. "Fine. Fine! Whatever. Ruby's on our side now. Whoop-de-do… Doc! Thank you for _finally_ showing up!" Roman announced as the purple haired man came in.

DuFrense walked up and had to do a double take as seeing the two Roses side by side. "Uhh…"

"Yeah, apparently Ruby here has made a full recovery. Make sure of that will you?" Roman said, ignoring DuFrense's glare.

Ruby sighed. _Well, if it's the only way they'll be sure. _"Fine, let's get this over with," she stepped out so Doc could see her clearly. She saw him concentrate and felt the feeling of being x-rayed again, but tolerated it for the time being. _If this is what it takes. _

After a minute, Doc looked away and the feeling faded. "Aside from Aura depletion and tired muscles, she's perfectly fit. I think you might have overcharged your Aura when you ran which healed you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, what about the important thing," Roman impatiently asked. "What about her mind?"

Doc looked directly at him this time. "There is no sign of mental tampering at all," DuFresne said. "her mind is now healthy... relatively."

"Meaning…" Roman prompted.

"That her memories are her own. Nobody altered them or implanted them. In other words everything she said is true. All of that did happen. She's not Ruby Rose, or rather, _our_ Ruby Rose."

"Finally," Ruby muttered as Summer hugged her from the side. She looked at Roman. "Good enough for you Torchwick?"

Roman had a constipated look on his face as he tried to realize what had been said. "Well… that's…" he looked up and met the two pairs of silver eyes. "Humph. Fine. She's actually not Ebonly…" He trailed off as the consequences of what he said came to him. The others noticed his change.

"What?" Summer asked.

"If this Ruby," he gestured to her, "is here, and she was brought here by that Dust crystal, then-"

"That's how I can get back!" Ruby said excitedly. But then it dropped immediately. "But I don't know how to make Dust crystals like that. That's always Weiss' thing."

"Something will come up," Summer comforted Ruby.

"So what I was going to say, before I was rudely interrupted," Roman continued, "is if this Ruby was brought here by that crystal, then the other one's… probably in your Remnant right now.

Ruby's eyes grew big as she understood what that meant. Rose in her world. With her teammates. At her school. She had been there for almost two weeks. She looked exactly like her…

"Oh god…"

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

_(Twelve Days Previously…)_

"Well Schnee, what did you make that is so important you called me here?" Rose inquired as she walked into the Dust Workplace in Beacon Academy. The workplace at the moment was abandoned save for her wonderfully submissive partner. Weiss Schnee had been working almost the entire week on some project that she wanted to be a surprise for her Mistress. Rose really didn't care and let her have her fun, just making sure that she was present when required, both for the school and her.

Schnee liked experimenting with Dust, probably stemming from her family's company. She needed to have some sort of hobby, just like Rose's happened to be weapon design amongst others.

Schnee looked up from her workbench and her eyes lit up, both in eagerness to please, and minor anger and fear. _As it should be. _"Mistress, I made a new Dust Crystal that you might like to use…" Blue eyes blinked as she saw two others walk in past Rose's black cloak. "I… didn't think you'd bring the rest of the team Mistress."

"Well tough luck," Yang Xiao Long said, being, unfortunately, Rose's half-sister. "We're here snow bitch, what'cha gonna' do about it?"

"Ohhh, so many things, Whore," Schnee said as she unhooked Myrtenaster.

Rose sighed internally. _Xiao Long just loves to grate on other people's nerves. I know because I have to live with her for some Oum damned reason._ "Xiao Long," she spoke, holding her arm out to stop the blonde's murderous march, "lest you forget, we're in a _Dust storage room_. Unless you want to blow yourself up, save it for the field. There are enough Grimm and others for you instead of targeting our team…" Rose glanced over at Belladonna, "Or save it for bed."

Xiao Long grunted and took a swing at her, which Rose dodged easily, not even using her Semblance this time. "Sloppy." Was all she said,

"Wasn't trying," Xiao Long shrugged.

"Now that that is out of the way," Belladonna walked with obvious feline grace into the workshop.

"Right," Schnee said as she calmed down from Xiao Long's abrasive behavior and put back her weapon. "Anyway, I've been prepping for the Vytal tournament and future missions by trying to make new Dust combinations." She gestured to the table. "This is what I've accomplished." The table was littered with ground Dust, a sealed box, a bag, and dead crystals. On the side of the workbench was one of the Schnee Dust compressors, which looked like it had been used a lot recently as there were soot marks all over it.

Schnee went over and picked up something that was wrapped in a cloth and handed it to Rose. Intrigued, Rose opened the cloth, and then quirked an eyebrow. Inside was a perfectly cut Dust crystal, but what made it unique was that it was a pure combination of red and black. "A Red-Black Dust crystal? Impressive," she admitted.

"Thank you Mistress," Schnee said, "though I do believe the nature of each Dust color changed when they were combined. I am… unsure of the effects it will have."

"So you gave me something that may just blow up in my face then, Pet?" Rose deadpanned.

Schnee tried to find the right words as she panicked momentarily, ignoring the chuckles from the other two members. "No no! I highly doubt that it would do that Mistress. It's… I already tested it and couldn't get any reactions. I even tried White Dust and that didn't work, but I suspect that may be the key." She looked up and met her eyes. "I'm sorry. If you want I can try again Mistress, for you."

Rose smirked, loving it when she groveled, especially when her collar was even more visible around Schnee's neck when she begged. "No. That will be fine. I'm curious and want to try it myself now," she said as she held it up, the red parts of the crystal casting a glow on her face from the overhead lights.

Closing her eyes, Rose concentrated on channeling her pulsing Aura into the crystal. She could feel it activate and start drawing on her Aura, but after a moment, nothing happened. Frowning, Rose tried again. She could feel the crystal absorbing her Aura, sucking it up like a dry sponge, but it seemed to do nothing except glow brighter.

"So you made an impressive glow stick, good job," Belladonna commented dryly.

"If you have nothing helpful to say, then stay _quiet_." Rose hissed, shutting up their resident cat Faunus. _I don't want to deal with their comments right now. One false move and I can reduce this room to scrap. I can tell that by the amount of energy this thing is taking. _She looked at the crystal and it was glowing nicely, and Rose could tell it was reaching critical mass, but never tipping over it. _What do I need? _

Casting her gaze about, she saw some White Dust vials nearby. _Right, Pet said something about it needing White Dust. _She walked over and grabbed one, then tapped the Dust onto the crystal. That should help. Just a little bit more of a boost. She concentrated again, pushing her Aura through the White Dust into the crystal. She ignored Schnee's gasp and the sudden retreating footsteps. _I can feel it. It's almost enough. But just not there. I won't be denied. _

Growling to herself, she forced one last bit of Aura into the crystal. That finally broke through and tipped the balance. The crystal in her hand started glowing even brighter than before. She ignored the warnings and shouts her teammates were giving. The crystal let out one giant burst and shattered, releasing the Aura inside and activating the crystals effects.

A bright flash came through the room and Rose crumpled to the ground, looking slightly different now with her cape now red and her leggings now black.

Schnee, Belladonna, and Xiao Long uncovered their faces and looked at their downed leader. "Well, that happened." Xiao Long said. "I'll wake her up now."

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**It's been the most asked question...**

**You've been waiting...**

**And you shall receive...**

**Yes, that last bit means we've finished the first Arc (goddamn it Yang) and we're moving on to the second, featuring Rose in Ruby's Remnant. *Celebration!* **

**What did you think of Summer and Ruby? Joyful tears? Honestly, that was what held up this chapter so much because I wanted so many things to feel right and to get Summer's reasoning down. Please let me know what you think. :S**

**Now for the unfortunate part, the second arc won't start until sometime next year.  
*****Holds up hands to stop the murderous comments* Let me explain.  
I have stories that I haven't updated since March that I still want to work on, plus new stories that just won't leave me alone (and I hate myself for it). Plus Finals for me are next week and god takes breaks on test days. So my schedule is a bit crowded. **

**Right now, my plan is to crank out another _RWBHY: The Aura Mage_ chapter and at the same time, go through and edit most of my Frozen stories and get new updates for them as well (I'm dreading writing the next chapter of _On The Road, Far From Home_; it's gonna be like 20,000 words... help :C ), plus work on some new stories. And before somebody says "that's too much" I agree. Unfortunately my creative writing mind doesn't. And that's the problem. **

**Eh, if I can study ten minutes before a test and feel pretty good about how I did, I'll be fine. **

**At any rate, to ease your probably now concerned minds, this story will never be abandoned. There might be breaks, but never abandoned. The last bit of this chapter is actually the first bit of Chapter 12: A Rose by any other Name... as a teaser sorta thing. Rose will wreak havoc... you'll be witness of that. **

**Anyhow, I've gone on for long enough. As always, please Read, Review, Favorite, and Follow (R.R.F.F) this story. **

**Signing off for now**

**-OrangeGalen**

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**Edit: 12/12/15**

**Just saw episode 6 of RWBY V3... oh holy fucking shit. This changes things... a lot of things. Gahh! My heart!**


	12. A Rose by any Other Name

**Hello everybody, it's back! After a month and a half, it's time to begin the second arc of Stark Contrast! This time, we're focusing on Rose now... Hee hee. Fun times ahead in the next few chapters. Seriously though, thank you all for your support, and I hope to see the popularity of this story grow. On another note, I updated the cover of this story a while back using an art program I got during Christmas, and it looks nice (in my opinion). **

**One final thing... oh my god Volume 3 of RWBY... Shit got real really fast. **

**'Nuf said. Presenting, Chapter 12: A Rose by any Other Name...**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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**Alternate Remnant**  
**Twelve Days previously...**

"Well Schnee, what did you make that is so important you called me here?" Rose inquired as she walked into the Dust Workplace in Beacon Academy. The workplace at the moment was abandoned save for her wonderfully submissive partner. Weiss Schnee had been working almost the entire week on some project that she wanted to be a surprise for her Mistress. Rose really didn't care and let her have her fun, just making sure that she was present when required, both for the school and her.

Schnee liked experimenting with Dust, probably stemming from her family's company. She needed to have some sort of hobby, just like Rose's happened to be weapon design amongst others.

Schnee looked up from her workbench and her eyes lit up, both in eagerness to please, and minor anger and fear. _As it should be. _"Mistress, I made a new Dust Crystal that you might like to use…" Blue eyes blinked as she saw two others walk in past Rose's black cloak. "I… didn't think you'd bring the rest of the team Mistress."

"Well tough luck," Yang Xiao Long said, being, unfortunately, Rose's half-sister. "We're here snow bitch, what'cha gonna' do about it?"

"Ohhh, so many things, Whore," Schnee said as she unhooked Myrtenaster.

Rose sighed internally. _Xiao Long just loves to grate on other people's nerves. I know because I have to live with her for some Oum damned reason._ "Xiao Long," she spoke, holding her arm out to stop the blonde's murderous march, "lest you forget, we're in a _Dust storage room_. Unless you want to blow yourself up, save it for the field. There are enough Grimm and others for you instead of targeting our team…" Rose glanced over at Belladonna, "Or save it for bed."

Xiao Long grunted and took a swing at her, which Rose dodged easily, not even using her Semblance this time. "Sloppy." Was all she said,

"Wasn't trying," Xiao Long shrugged.

"Now that that is out of the way," Belladonna walked with obvious feline grace into the workshop.

"Right," Schnee said as she calmed down from Xiao Long's abrasive behavior and put back her weapon. "Anyway, I've been prepping for the Vytal tournament and future missions by trying to make new Dust combinations." She gestured to the table. "This is what I've accomplished." The table was littered with ground Dust, a sealed box, a bag, and dead crystals. On the side of the workbench was one of the Schnee Dust compressors, which looked like it had been used a lot recently as there were soot marks all over it.

Schnee went over and picked up something that was wrapped in a cloth and handed it to Rose. Intrigued, Rose opened the cloth, and then quirked an eyebrow. Inside was a perfectly cut Dust crystal, but what made it unique was that it was a pure combination of red and black. "A Red-Black Dust crystal? Impressive," she admitted.

"Thank you Mistress," Schnee said, "though I do believe the nature of each Dust color changed when they were combined. I am… unsure of the effects it will have."

"So you gave me something that may just blow up in my face then, Pet?" Rose deadpanned.

Schnee tried to find the right words as she panicked momentarily, ignoring the chuckles from the other two members. "No no! I highly doubt that it would do that Mistress. It's… I already tested it and couldn't get any reactions. I even tried White Dust and that didn't work, but I suspect that may be the key." She looked up and met her eyes. "I'm sorry. If you want I can try again Mistress, for you."

Rose smirked, loving it when she groveled, especially when her collar was even more visible around Schnee's neck when she begged. "No. That will be fine. I'm curious and want to try it myself now," she said as she held it up, the red parts of the crystal casting a glow on her face from the overhead lights.

Closing her eyes, Rose concentrated on channeling her pulsing Aura into the crystal. She could feel it activate and start drawing on her Aura, but after a moment, nothing happened. Frowning, Rose tried again. She could feel the crystal absorbing her Aura, sucking it up like a dry sponge, but it seemed to do nothing except glow brighter.

"So you made an impressive glow stick, good job," Belladonna commented dryly.

"If you have nothing helpful to say, then stay _quiet_." Rose hissed, shutting up their resident cat Faunus. _I don't want to deal with their comments right now. One false move and I can reduce this room to scrap. I can tell that by the amount of energy this thing is taking. _She looked at the crystal and it was glowing nicely, and Rose could tell it was reaching critical mass, but never tipping over it. _What do I need? _

Casting her gaze about, she saw some White Dust vials nearby. _Right, Pet said something about it needing White Dust. _She walked over and grabbed one, then tapped the Dust onto the crystal. That should help. Just a little bit more of a boost. She concentrated again, pushing her Aura through the White Dust into the crystal. She ignored Schnee's gasp and the sudden retreating footsteps. _I can feel it. It's almost enough. But just not there. I won't be denied. _

Growling to herself, she forced one last bit of Aura into the crystal. That finally broke through and tipped the balance. The crystal in her hand started glowing even brighter than before. She ignored the warnings and shouts her teammates were giving. The crystal let out one giant burst and shattered, releasing the Aura inside and activating the crystals effects.

A bright flash came through the room and the last thing Rose felt was her knees hitting the ground before she blacked out.

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**Remnant Prime**

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"-by! Ruby!" The call from a girl's voice was the first thing she heard as she started coming around, then the other senses started returning to her, touch, feeling, smell.

_Ow, my head. What did that Dust crystal do? Drain my Aura? _

"Ruby! Are you alright? Are you okay?" Rose rolled over and cracked open her eyes to a curious sight. Xiao Long was kneeling over her, her now lavender eyes shining in… concern? _Her eyes their original lavender… what made her so scared or surprised they changed back? It couldn't be me. _Rose snorted internally, _She probably was scared that I had died and she couldn't kill me herself. _

"I'm fine Xiao Long, now back off and give me some room," Rose spoke coolly, causing Xiao Long to blink in surprise for some reason, her eyes still not changing back to red. But the blonde did as told and backed up slightly. Rose shook her head and did some mental exercises and tests to see if there was anything wrong. Aside from residual soreness and tiredness there was nothing unusual.

_Aura feels fine, if low, but it's coming back. The tiredness isn't muscle related, it's mental._ Concentrating a bit, she brushed off the proverbial cobwebs and could feel her mind returning to normal thought processes, the tiredness pushed aside until she could rest fully later.

Once she was done she looked around and got a good look at her team. And blinked in confusion. Then again.

Xiao Long's vest was now less revealing and tight, her boots were a different color scheme, but the major difference was the dragon tattoo she got on her right leg when she turned fourteen was gone. That was one of the special things their father did when he managed to get time away from the council. And when they weren't training.

Belladonna had some ridiculous ribbon bow covering her Faunus cat ears that shouldn't fool anyone. The only other differences were minor ones in clothing and accessory choices.

Schnee however was a different story and had more differences, like Xiao Long. Her skirt was now shorter and wider, and had a different look in her eyes. There was no devotion or fear in them, only mild concern. Last, her neck was bare, her slave/ownership collar gone.

Rose groaned and stood up, brushing away the hand that was offered. _Are my senses being thrown off, or did that Dust crystal cause me to start hallucinating? _Running another quick mental check, she thought, _Okay, maybe it is a hallucination. _"What happened? What were the effects of the crystal?" She enquired, staring at Schnee.

"W-well," she stuttered, shifting a little under the intense stare of her silver eyes, "I thought that the crystal was going to explode or something, so I tried to stop you… but that apparently startled you to add in a last bit of Aura. There was a bright flash… and then you fell to the ground…"

"And now look different," Belladonna finished, looking at her with analytical eyes. "There was a flash, but that was it. It must have affected or changed you though."

Rose just narrowed her eyes at the cat Faunus. "You best mind your tone, Belladonna." She was rewarded with a slight flinch. "Besides, the Dust didn't change me, but it possibly is causing me to see and hear things differently. That must be the reason why you think a little bow can fool everyone into thinking you aren't a Faunus…"

"Hey, just because there was an accident doesn't mean you should be so rude to Blake," Schnee interrupted. Rose's ire was turned on her now.

"Quiet Pet, and I see you've seem to have forgotten what I've done for and to you. Then again, you love reminders don't you? Beg for them quite often," Rose finished with a leer.

"What?" Schnee seemed taken aback and more than a little confused from the, all things considered, normal rebuke. A bit of momentary familiar fear crept into her blue eyes.

"Ruby, maybe we should-" Xiao Long tried, but Rose didn't hear any of it. _She dares use that name?... Oh, she's testing me, but she's forgotten I bite back in this case._

"Xiao Long, are you trying to test my patience?"

She blinked, "Ruby, wha-"

"Or maybe that Dust Crystal did some things to you, scrambled the parts of your already small mind that aren't filled with images of your girlfriend?"

Xiao Long frowned. "Okay Ruby, this isn't funny."

"Don't. Call. Me. That." Rose snarled, causing Xiao Long to flinch back. Rose calmed herself. _No use getting angry over this. Remember what father said, 'focus your emotions, don't let them control you. Control them.' Granted he was talking mainly to Xiao Long, but it still applies. _Rose took a breath, "We've been over this before, _dear sister_, but maybe this time I'll forgive you. The Dust crystal obviously did something. From who's point of view remains to be seen."

"Well, from our point of view the crystal did something to you," Belladonna pointed out.

"Oh really?" Rose questioned, raising an eyebrow in a condescending way. "Pray tell what has changed about me?" _In some way I actually am curious. These three seem to not be at each other's throats all the time. It's… intriguing. What did that Dust crystal do? _

"Well, your cloak and leggings have swapped colors," Schnee started, bringing Rose's attention to her, "your eyeliner is black now… and are those skulls?" She suddenly frowned, looking at her pins holding her cloak.

"Yes they are," Rose said sardonically. "I've made you unpin them enough times for you to know that."

"This is just too weird," Xiao Long commented. "Let's go to the infirmary and get you checked out Ruby-_gack_!" The blond was cut off when Rose _blurred_ and grabbed her by the neck, practically vanishing from where she was standing, only a few black rose petals drifting ominously to the ground.

"Do not call me by my first name," Rose hissed in Xiao Long's ear, taking pleasure in the fact that she was chocking her unfortunately half-sister and that same half-sister now had fear in her eyes that she hadn't seen in years. "The only ones who have that right are Mom and Dad, and the Supreme Commander. Mutually like how you don't want me to call you by your first name, Xiao Long."

"Wha-_gurk_-Ruby-"

Before anything else could happen, Rose felt herself violently tugged away from Xiao Long and would have skidded on the floor pathetically if she hadn't used her semblance to quickly land on her feet. She looked up to see the white glyph fade away, its purpose finished. She glanced over to Schnee who slowly lowered her hand, a look of shock on her face. From what though was up for debate.

"So you've decided to side against your Mistress, Pet?" Rose asked softly, fully knowing what was about to happen. _I'm going to enjoy this. _She reached behind her and pulled out Bloody Rose and transformed it into Rifle mode, and got ready for the fight.

The other three members of her team looked at her weapon as if they've never seen it before. Schnee looked between Xiao Long and her, and then came to a decision and stepped in-between her and Xiao Long. "You're not yourself right now. That Dust did something to you, and we need to get it out of your system. I know the doctors here at Beacon can do that. Let's not fight."

Rose frowned. _I was expecting an attack from a dog that had a taste of freedom and wanted to keep it, and I was fully prepared to remind the bitch her place. This… wasn't what I was expecting._ She blinked, then again. Then she shook her head._ No. The Dust is affecting them, not me. This is too much of a personality change, even if they were acting… which they're not. _

"We'll go to the infirmary, not for me, but for you three," Rose firmly stated, pointing at WBY.

"_We're_ fine." Schnee said. "You're not. Things are different about you. Aside from the clothing changes, your personality seems…" she seemed at a loss for words.

"Callous, adversarial, like you want to fight… not to mention extremely rude," Belladonna said, adding the last one in for herself.

"Well I've been described as worse," Rose said, nonchalantly agreeing with the Faunus' description.

"When?" Belladonna asked, seemingly curious and/or stalling for something. Rose shrugged, not offering an answer. _Almost everyday, sometime multiple times, mainly by you three._ Belladonna shook her head, "Put away Crescent Rose. There's no need for violence."

Rose looked at the three of them. _They definitely seem like they aren't ready for a fight. Only Xiao Long has her weapons on her. And what's Crescent Rose?_ She slowly put away Bloody Rose, distrust painted across her face, ready for an attack anyway.

Belladonna frowned, clearly thinking. "Something is out of place; we're not seeing something."

"Maybe it's ignorance, or the unwillingness to believe what you see," Rose retorted. "However I'm still banking on the Dust affecting you three, not me. I feel like I always have."

"Alright, whatever," Xiao Long spoke up again, a worried look in her lavender eyes. "Let's just go to the infirmary and we can _all_ get checked out. Will that work Ru-… will that work?" She cut herself off, twitching her neck a bit, which still had finger marks on it.

_Blink._

_Blink._

_Okay, now I_ know _something's affected them. Xiao Long's being reasonable and actually came up with a sensible solution. _Rose sighed. _There's a time and place for fighting, and this is neither of those. Pick and choose your fights Rose._ "Finally using your brains then huh?" She said, but not as loudly as before. Then she returned to normal volume. "Fine. Let's just get the extra Black Dust and go." She had noticed them previously and went to put them in her school bag.

Schnee was the one to speak up. "Why do you want them? They don't do anything and you know I was going to toss them later."

Ruby turned to look at her while putting the Black Dust crystals in her bag. "Surely _you_ of all people would know what Black Dust does." She was rewarded with a confused, blank look. _Seriously?_ "Really? Did the Red-Black crystal do something to your memories as well? You just happen to forget one of the biggest discoveries in a couple hundred years?" Blank looks all around. Rose refrained from slumping, having a bit more self control. "You gotta' be fuckin' kidding me."

"Ruby! Watch your mouth." Xiao Long snapped.

"And control yours!" Rose shot back. _And there it is finally, the faint smell of phosphorus burning. Xiao Long's finally calling off the act._ Rose could tell Xiao Long was close to getting angry since her hair was starting to smolder. Rose smirked. "Now why don't you drag you girlfriend to your bed and burn off some of that aggression, hmm?"

She was slightly disappointed when Xiao Long incredibly calmed down and instead decided to ask a question, "Girlfriend? I'm not- I don't have a girlfriend. Who are you talking about?" She protested, drawing strange looks from the other two members of the team.

Rose couldn't help it. After a few seconds she started cackling. "Oh this is just too fuckin' good! That Dust crystal definitely is good for a laugh at your expense." She sighed and got her breath again. "But seriously, let's go before something else happens. While I sorta' like these naïve, amnesiac versions of you though, we should get trained doctors to get the Dust out of our systems before the Supreme Commander gets too interested in this. It would not be good for our records. Or us in general."

She brushed past them, going out of the Dust workshop. She missed the looks of concern the rest of her team shared with each other before they followed a little distance away from their changed leader.

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Yang shared a look with Blake and Weiss. They all knew that Dust crystal had done something to Ruby, and they were all extremely concerned about her. All of them had very similar thoughts and ideas, but no one knew the truth. _It's completely changed her personality, and her clothing and weapon,_ Yang thought. _She seems to think different things as if her own memory's been altered rather than ours. And she hates her first name, and thinks I don't want her to call me by my name. And it looked like she barely tolerated us, almost loathed us. _

_That crystal was a mistake, _Yang decided finally, echoing her other teammate's thoughts. _I just hope it isn't an irreparable one. I want my sister back, not this… corruption of her. I hope she'll be okay. I want her to be okay. I don't think I can loose you too… not in such a way. _Yang took a glimpse behind her at the black and white pair behind her. Both had frowns on their faces and while Weiss was thinking inward, Blake had her yellow eyes glued to Ruby's back, studying her. Yang couldn't blame her; Ruby now even moved differently, like she was constantly on the prowl for her prey.

Yang shook her head. _First the Breach, and now this. What will be next? I just want this craziness to take a break for… I don't know, a year?_ She sighed softly to herself. _I just hope the doctors can do something about Ruby._

The team made their way down the hallways of Beacon to the infirmary, following the billowing pitch-black cloak of their leader.

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**Funny story, I was thinking about the chapter name and was trying for what seemed like ages to think of who wrote that, and I was like, "Okay, I know the phrase is from something, and I know I've read it some where, so who- _Shakespeare_. Right. Romeo and Juliet." I interrupted my own thoughts. -_-**

**Anyway, apologies if you wanted a longer chapter, but it's how the story will be for the next couple chapters. I actually needed to re-arrange and combine a few chapters in order for some new ideas that I got/ someone suggested to me. Plus I still needed to dial in Rose's personality. This chapter isn't the best for you to get an idea of how she thinks/acts, but it'll make sense in the future. The longer chapters will resume in 2-3 more. **

**Thank you all for sticking with this, and as always, R.R.F.F**

**-OrangeGalen**


	13. Isn't As Sweet

**Hello again faithful (and brave) readers, Stark Contrast is here again with a new chapter! Somehow this story has moved into the top 500 favorited stories for RWBY with over 180 favorites...**  
**0.0**  
**Seriously though, thank you for your support and here's to more... everything really. **

**There'll be more author's notes at the bottom, so enjoy for now. **

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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The feeling of uneasiness, or wrongness, had been growing shortly after she had stepped out of the Dust workshop. It was nothing she could definitively define, but it was a general unease that was gnawing at her. The little differences she noticed maybe were part of it. Perhaps it was how there were just those minute alterations in the architecture of Beacon that one would only notice if they've made it a point to study the school. A different shade of grey _there_, a column a little thicker here, a door that was not supposed to be there or had moved a few feet down the hall. Changes that were grating on her awareness, raising her ire.

Or maybe it was because of the students and other hunters/huntresses in training. They all wore uniforms that were the same as before, but the overall feeling was different. The air was... something, not the same. She could see the body language and almost feel their emotions. Tensions weren't as high and there was something else… she couldn't quite place it. Almost as if everything felt… lighter. Not as heavy. It was disconcerting to have that ever-present weight suddenly gone. It wasn't nice as it had grown familiar.

_Whatever it is, there's something different_, Rose thought as she passed by another group of students, who went quiet as she passed and then broke out in whispers when she was further away. _And I don't think I like it. It's almost as if I'm back in Signal with the fresh meat who haven't been hardened yet to the life they thought they wanted. _

_Come to think of it, my team feels the same way… except for Belladonna, but on a lesser degree. And that means that something else happened, and it wasn't limited to just the Dust shop. Maybe it _is_ me who's having illusions… or maybe some sort of dream world coma? No, stick to the facts. I know that I haven't changed, but the world around me has, and this change is connected to the Red-Black crystal. Conjuncture indicates that the Dust had some sort of effect, and is affecting one of two parties; myself or everyone else. _

Rose constantly kept her head forward, but her eyes were anything but still as they constantly scanned the people and surroundings, looking for any signs of attackers or hostile movements. Although Beacon was a school and had its rules, it was the unspoken, unofficial rules that were laid down by the students themselves that mattered the most. Impromptu fights would happen when the teachers weren't around between students who held a grudge, or to show up one another, or gain a favor. There were the occasional mysterious disappearances, and sometimes the student would be found… the state of existing figuratively determined by a coin toss.

Rose knew how to make it look like an accident… or to put the blame on someone else. Joanes found that out the hard way when Rose subtly directed Xiao Long's misguided ire at him. The blonde got the blame, but nobody faulted her, or would punish her: they all knew what messing with her hair entailed. And when he was found with a lock of her hair hanging from his pocket, whistling away… At least there was _some_ body left over for his parents if they ever decide to collect it.

Rose put that memory aside as she neared the infirmary doors and opened them. She looked behind her and was amused to see her teammates flinch when she locked eyes with them. _As much as this is amusing, I would rather avoid having to explain what happened to the Supreme Commander without a solution to fix this._ "Well? What are you three waiting for? A written invitation?" At their hesitation Rose rolled her eyes. "Get. In." That managed to get them moving. She noticed they tried to stay as far away from her as they could without appearing obvious as they slid past her through the door. Rose chuckled, making them flinch again, which only further fed her laughter.

"If you're going to be as skittish as cats then you might as well ask Belladonna if she has an extra pair of cat ears," Rose commented as she followed the other members of her team.

"Okay, look," Schnee started, turning around, sounding fed up. "All this," she waved her hand at Rose, "that you have going on right now, just… keep it inside for two more minutes." Rose had to bite her tongue to keep from blurting out the immature 'that's what she said' joke. _True, her actual line was "oh fuck Mistress, keep it in there" with the vibrator strap-on, but still._

"Whatever," Rose dismissed her comment and looked for someone that worked there. She saw a nurse/doctor close by. "Hey, excuse me."

The girl looked up, a fox Faunus from the looks of the tail. "Yes?"

"We need to get a look at all of us for high amounts of accidental Dust infusion. There was an… incident down in the Workshop."

"Oh! Sure. What's your team?"

"R-W-B-Y," Rose answered.

"Okay, I'll alert Dr. Gold and he'll check you out," the Faunus nurse said.

"Make sure he checks them first," Rose said, pointing her thumb at her team. The nurse nodded and walked away.

"Ruby, you should be checked first," Schnee said.

"I'll only say it once more Schnee: do not call me by that name. Legally it's mine, but I will never use it willingly," Rose snarled. _Seriously, what's with these three? They're egging me on, but then say they don't want to fight. This is… I don't understand, and I hate that. _

Before _WBY could ask why, Dr. Gold came in, his hair a platinum blond/gold with light yellow eyes. "So, Team RWBY, you need to get checked out for accidental Dust infusion?"

Rose nodded. "That is correct. However, have them checked first," Rose pointed again at her team.

Dr. Gold blinked and then said, "Maybe you should volunteer fir-"

"I'm volunteering them," Rose said menacingly, booking no argument.

"Okay then," the doctor backed down, pointedly taking note of _WBY's faces and their nervousness. "If you would… please," he added, gesturing to the med-beds.

_WBY looked at each other, then at Rose who was glaring back at them. _Go on. Resist. You know you want to say something, and I would just love it for you to give me a reason to fight._ Disappointingly they sat down on three different beds and waited. The doctor took out a device and explained, "This will take a small sample of your blood and then scan it so we can see what Dust is in your blood." He looked questioningly at Schnee and she nodded.

He put the device against her arm and the vial attached started filling up with blood. After a few moments in beeped and he took it away and looked at it. "Hmm, exposure to blue, white, red Dust mainly, mainly residual from lifelong use… and some unknown Dust… what is that?" He asked himself.

"Probably Black Dust. I was experimenting with different Dust reactions for the past week," Schnee explained.

"Hmm, that explains it. Alone, none of these can cause any effect as they are right now and should wash out normally or with White Dust. The concentration isn't high enough to cause any alarm. You're clear, but I would stay away from Dust for a few days to be on the safe side." Schnee nodded in understanding.

Dr. Gold then went to Xiao Long and repeated the process, using a different vial obviously. "Trace amounts of red and orange Dust, along with that other Dust. All signs of long term usage again, mostly shell residue. Nothing to worry about."

Belladonna was the only one different, but once again, nothing serious. "You have a little more concentrated red, blue, and brown Dust in your blood, but like the others, it's old Dust, at least a week or more old. Once again nothing alarming or something you need to be concerned about."

As he was going about his testing, Rose grew more and more confused and concerned. _They barely have any Black Dust in their blood. Unless there's been… no, forget that, that's not even logical, or practical. Simulation? Why would this be a simulation? What's there to test? And how would they do such a thorough job with the simulation in such a short time? This is all excluding if this even _is_ a simulation since I have no knowledge of anything that can produce this accurate or interactive experience that isn't extremely intrusive or painful. Am I back to the hallucination theory then?_

She blinked as she came out of her thoughts, then again as she saw her team and the doctor staring at her. "Miss Rose? If you wouldn't mind having the test done on yourself?"

"I _do_ mind," Rose bluntly said, "but I'll do it anyway… that is if there's nothing wrong with my team?" She asked, figuring there wasn't. And if there was, it was being covered up in some conspiracy… and that sounded as ridiculous in her head as it did. She held out her arm and the doctor pressed the device against it. Rose didn't flinch as she felt a little pinprick, barely even noticeable and didn't even rate on her pain scale. The vial started filling up and the doctor removed it.

He made a noise of surprise. "Dear Oum, that black Dust is completely in your system. And there's a lot of it, almost completely bound to your body. I'll have to do a general purge of your body to get it-uhhh!" The doctor cut off when Rose glared at him, freezing him in place.

"You will do no such thing," Rose said. _The less Black Dust one has, the less control over their Grimm they will have. A complete purge would have me loose control over all of my Grimm, and I'm not going to make the effort to build them up again from scratch. That Nevermore was a bitch to get in the first place. _

"Please, Miss Rose, we don't know what this kind of Dust actually does. It's for your own safety," Dr. Gold tried.

"I know exactly what you're doing, and it's not happening," Rose said. _If they want to cripple my effectiveness, then I'll return the favor. _

"Look Rub-Rose, whatever! That Dust did something to you. Please, just, do what the doctor says," Xiao Long pleaded on deaf ears.

Rose just smirked at her. She reached behind her and pulled out Bloody Rose, then expanded it to its full scythe with the harsh grinding sound she loved. "Try and make me." _Why are they so shocked at my weapon? Have they never seen it before? What the hell is going on here? What exactly did that Dust do?_ These questions without ready answers were driving her further into the 'crazy' category.

"What happened to your weapon?" Schnee asked in shock.

Rose frowned and looked at it, then back up at her rebellious pet. "Nothing. It's the same weapon that gave you that pretty scar on your face. Maybe I should give you a matching one on your other eye."

Schnee took a step back. "What? When did-… that never happened! You didn't give me this," she pointed to the scar. "That was before we even knew each other, when I was training."

Rose growled and shifted her stance. "I'm sick and tired of hearing this… these lies, falsehoods! You admit the Dust didn't do anything to you, but you are all the ones acting like fucking wusses. It's like you've all had a personality transplant with naïve little kids, and are about as annoying. I know I haven't changed, and you say you haven't. Only one of us is right." _And it's me. _

_Let's see. Right now, only Xiao Long is capable of prolonged fighting since she has Burning Celica on her, and I know how she fights all too well. Schnee may be able to provide support with her glyphs, but Belladonna is worthless at unarmed combat, and anything she does do I can avoid easily. This will be easier than most sparing practices. _

Dr. Gold had strategically fled, leaving RWBY alone in the infirmary. Rose was eyeing her team, waiting for them to make a move. Schnee took a step forward. "Ruby-"

There was a burst of black rose petals and a _swishing_ sound, and then Weiss let out a screech of pain as she clutched the right side of her face. Rose leapt back and shifted her hold on Bloody Rose so she could run her finger down the edge of it to collect the blood that now stained the cold, silver metal. She then took that finger and licked it. _Hmm, tastes better than I remember. Or maybe it's sweeter because of the occasion._

Xiao Long and Belladonna looked like they were in shock, then Xiao Long turned to face her. Her eyes were now finally fully red and Rose could feel the heat rising in the room. An expression of rage was now splayed across her face.

Rose shrugged off her bag and shifted her stance again, regaining her normal grip on her weapon. "Finally," she said eagerly. "Let's dance."

* * *

Yang had no idea what to think anymore. Something had happened to her little sister, and it wasn't for the better. That Red-Black crystal had done something to her mind and body, changing it, warping it, into something dark. She could feel it. They all could, but had no way of coming to terms with it. Or time. Their sweet leader had become an aggressive… bitch, for lack of a better word. And Yang was 100% certain is was because of that Black Dust in her system.

_Weiss had said the Dust felt off, unnatural, and we have no idea what it can do. It totally changed Ruby, both in mind and physically. And it changed her weapon too. It looks like a corrupted version of Crescent Rose. _The form looked the same as before, but the barrel was a little wider and the ammo magazine looked like it held more rounds in it. The main difference was the blade of the scythe. It was now unevenly serrated

But then the unthinkable had happened. Ruby had attacked her _teammate_, her _partner_. Yang watched with wide eyes as red started to stream out from between Weiss' fingers as she held them up to her face to stem the bleeding, hissing in pain since she didn't have her Aura up fully.

_Ruby just attacked Weiss. Ruby just attacked her teammate. Ruby just attacked our friend for no reason._ Anger. That familiar emotion started to rise up, searing and boiling her blood. At this moment in time, Ruby ceased to be her teammate, her little sister, and had now become an enemy. One that has attacked someone close to her and seems willing, eager even, to do so again.

Yang was the only one of them who was armed at the moment, and Weiss was wounded. Blake had some experience with unarmed combat, but against Ruby when she was going full out... that would not be advisable. When Ruby went all out with her weapon, she turned into a red-silver whirlwind of metal and bullets.

_Somehow, I think that will be the case here. _

She didn't wait and placed herself in front of Weiss and let out a blast from Ember Celica, then got ready for Ruby's counter attack that would make it seem as if she had appeared out of nowhere in a burst of rose petals. Yang was a bit startled when Ruby reappeared in her face (she was expecting her to be in the air) and had to duck under a vicious swing, then rolled away from the follow-up reverse attack. She fired another Dust spread and forced Ruby to spin her scythe to deflect the blast.

_I need to get inside her guard and disarm her. She's not herself and is being influenced by the Black Dust. Ruby's more or less useless without her scythe. Unarmed combat, save for kicks, isn't her forte. _Yang charged forward and had to move from side to side to keep away from the blade that was trying to tear her. She blocked a swing with her right gauntlet when it met the pole, and could feel her Semblance build up a little bit more.

Before Yang could retaliate, Ruby jumped back and collapsed her weapon into its gun mode and fired. However, unlike her old weapon, this one fired a three-round semi-automatic burst instead of just one single action bolt. Yang felt it hit her Aura, and some part of her thought that it was a little less than her normal high-impact rounds. Yang ducked and weaved through the bullets now coming in, some hitting, some missing and striking other pieces of equipment in the infirmary, and tried to get close to Ruby.

Ruby wasn't doing it and was backing up slowly and surely, keeping Yang at bay. _This isn't working. _However, she felt a shift. There was the recognizable sound of Weiss' glyph forming, and then a black blur shot past Yang in the form of Blake. She actually managed to tackle Ruby, but the force threw them out of the infirmary.

Yang turned to look at her white teammate. Blood was staining her face and framing her right eye, but there was a hardness in those blue orbs, the kind when one gets in combat. "Are you alright?" Yang asked. _Stupid question I know, but I need to ask. _

"I'm fine," Weiss spat, "just go after her. She's not herself right now."

Yang nodded and rushed after them, leaving unsaid the _'I know.'_ It took a few precious seconds to catch up since Ruby had driven Blake further away, Blake barely staying ahead of the swirling scythe as it tried to flay her. It was a continual retreat aided by liberal usage of her Semblance's shadow clones. And the entire hallway was filled with black rose petals that were slowly disappearing.

Yang charged forward, a battle cry erupting from her lips. Her fist punched forward and hit metal from where Ruby held up her scythe to block. Yang tried to grab it out of her hand, but Ruby Semblanced away and then swung again, missing as Yang dodged.

"Pathetic," Ruby said as she swung again to try and catch Blake. "All of you save Xiao Long unarmed. What would the Commander say?" She moved out of the way of Yang's shotgun blasts and then tried to kick Black out of the way but only hit shadows. Blake landed behind Ruby but unfortunately was hit in her abdomen when Ruby drove the spike of her scythe into her. Thankfully her Aura blocked it, but Yang was incensed seeing this.

"I'm not going to let you hurt her," Yang shouted as she fired both arms backwards and then went for a punch. This time she actually hit Ruby, but it was a glancing blow. Still enough to send her tumbling down the hall.

"We can't keep this up," Blake said, and Yang nodded in agreement.

"Let's try to get her outside, then call your weapon so we can stop her."

Ruby stood up, an evil smirk on her face that looked completely unlike her. Then she disappeared in a burst of rose petals, but Yang was already punching, seeing this trick again, in a wide shot-spread. They exchanged blows, Ruby catching all of the rounds, and Yang taking a full swing. The sisters shot away from each other, propelled by the other's attack. Yang could feel her Semblance kick up another two notches. _I've almost forgotten how hard she can hit me with that…_

An idea formed. Yang shifted over to her left in front of a window. "Is that it? C'mon Rubes, just because I'm your sister doesn't mean you just give me those little love taps in a fight."

She was slightly surprised when she was suddenly flying backwards with broken glass and black rose petals surrounding her, not even knowing they had moved. Then her back hit the ground and she rolled a bit, then wobbled up to her feet.

Ruby was stalking closer to her; the scythe dragging on the brick ground in a vicious scrape, sending up sparks. "You are not my sister," Ruby growled. "We may have the same father, and had to live together, but we are _not_ sisters. Even mom acknowledges that especially how you made that clear to all of us."

_Mom? Summer? When… no, her memory's been affected. Don't listen to her version of history._ "I won't argue with you just because that Dust did something to your mind and anything I say will be rejected. Ruby, you have to get that Dust out of you. We don't know what happens when it stays inside a person for too long."

"But I do," Ruby said as she sped forward and slammed Yang with her scythe, her movements a blur. Yang tried to avoid them but was mainly unsuccessful and felt several hits against her diminishing Aura. On the plus side, she was getting stronger.

Yang spun and then used both her gauntlets to block the next downward strike, causing a shockwave to erupt from both of them. They didn't stay like that for long before they broke apart. Yang saw Ruby concentrate, as if she was thinking, but then her face grew confused and distracted. "What?" She barely heard the whisper of dismay Ruby uttered before Yang noticed the now calculating look in Ruby's eyes, the analytical decisions taking place behind them. _She's trying to find a way to get around my Semblance. Probably by using a lot of attack that don't have much power but will whittle down my Aura…_

_Thankfully I don't need to see what that will do._ Ruby disappeared and Yang felt a blow against her back that propelled her forward. She turned it into a roll that let the next scythe move barely miss… and for Blake to charge over her head, Gambol Shroud in hand. There was a clang as metal met metal, then the two most agile members of Team RWBY started clashing. They were two black blurs as they danced around each other, interspaced by flashes of red, white, and the silver grey of metal.

"So Belladonna, finally coming out to play?" Ruby taunted as they attacked one another. "Of course you couldn't resist having your girlfriend injured now would it?" Blake didn't respond and just upped the tempo of her strikes, Ruby easily matching.

Yang stood up and waited for the right moment, concentrating her Aura and Semblance to her fists. Then she jumped up and came right down in the space Blake had just vacated for her. A small crater appeared where she landed, a shockwave of condensed air and fire blew outwards, knocking back Ruby enough so Blake could shoot her weapon out with the ribbon attached to wrap around Crescent Rose. Blake yanked on the ribbon, but Ruby had too much of a grip on it for it to be separated.

Then an evil smirk appeared on her face. Time seemed to slow as Yang watched Ruby let herself be pulled along with the ribbon, gaining even more speed by using her Semblance, charging at Blake. There was a _schick_ and then Blake's scream of pain as the spike at the end of the scythe entered her abdomen, completely bypassing her Aura as it was too much force in one area for it to protect as that place was hit before. Ruby withdrew the spike and then watched gleefully as Blake fell down to the ground.

She turned around, her black cloak fluttering in the slight breeze, and slowly brought up the spike and tenderly swiped her fingers against it, staining them red. She brought those fingers up and then licked them lovingly, swirling her tongue around each digit, cleaning them off, finishing each finger with a loud smacking sound. "Delicious," she hummed, then offered her fingers to Yang. "You want a taste of your girlfriend?"

Red. That was all Yang saw. An inhuman screech of anger and fear came out of her mouth and she shot herself forward, all façade of calm gone. The fact that it was her sister that just did that barely even scraped the surface of the rage-covered mind. Her fury grew when all her fist met were rose petals as Ruby got out of her way. Yang turned and charged forward again, missing again as her corrupted sister dodged each punch or shot.

After a moment, Yang took a breath and her rage calmed down due to slight exhaustion. She glared at Ruby, standing there with a mostly calm face with just a hint of smugness on it. "_How_! How could you do something like that!?"

"She deserved it," Ruby spat back at her, her silver eyes narrowing, "for defending you and Schnee when _they_ deserved it. I don't allow many fuck-ups on my team, and you all took it too far. Now you all will deal with the consequences!" Ruby shifted, getting ready to sprint forward again, and Yang got ready to meet her charge.

There was an unexpected sound and they both looked at the source. Behind Ruby was a black glyph, with Weiss standing off to the side, supporting it. Her face was haphazardly bandaged, still letting her see by not getting blood in her eye, but not much else. It was still enough for her to help.

Yang turned back to Ruby and fired once, the shot catching her black clad sister in the chest. The force sent her into the glyph, which amplified the momentum and caused her to go flying backwards into a pillar, which cracked under the force.

"_Enough_!" Yang suddenly couldn't move and saw that Weiss was in the same predicament. There was a clacking of heels, then Glynda Goodwitch appeared in her field of view. "Would you four care to explain what is going on here?" She snapped, demanding them to try and answer.

Ruby shifted and smirked. "Well Miss Goodwitch, glad of you to join my little lesson for my team." Goodwitch was not in the mood to deal with Ruby's behavior and threw a piece of rubble against her head, demolishing her red Aura and knocking her out. The black clad leader of RWBY slumped against the pillar, out cold.

Despite herself Yang sighed in relief, that the fight for not was over, but then she heard the mutterings. She looked around and saw that at least half of Beacon was in a wide circle around them, confused and worried looks on their faces. Yang wasn't much for cussing, but in this case it was needed.

"Well… shit."

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**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

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**That's the end of the chapter... goddamn, finished the last part in about a day. I enjoy writing the fighting scenes so that went by fast. **

**Now for some comments I'm sure I'm going to get. This chapter marks the beginning of the altered cannon (Weiss getting a second scar, etc.) and while things will play out differently, basic events will go as they went in the Volume. **

**Speaking of which... V3Ch12 destroyed me... 'nuff said. _#SaveTheRWBYRedheads_**

**Anyway, so there will be changes, and for the naysayers I might have... "Oh readers, have a little faith." I have an idea, and I know how to do it. If things seem missing or incomplete, it'll be addressed in later chapters. And characters/events will continue. That includes the whole Salem thing... in both worlds... he-hee (fun times ahead). **

**Anywho, after reading this, go check out my new story _An Unexpected Rose_, a RWBY/Hobbit crossover... It'll have those (mostly) happy feels RWBY destroyed with the Volume finale. **

**And as always, Read, Review, Favorite, and Follow. (R.R.F.F.)**

**-OrangeGalen**


	14. Headmaster Ozpin

**Hello everybody. Welcome back to another chapter of Stark Contrast, and I have news that has surprised even me. We now have 210 Favorites! Whaaa? Honestly I thought this was going to be another forgotten story in the anneals of FanFiction, but I guess I was wrong. **

**Anyway, shout out to BlazeBlaster1999 who wrote a 'review' for this story. **  
**And somebody mentioned how Rose's fight was different, and mentioned there was something different about the team's fighting style. Basically, Alter!RWBY is more individualistic, meaning that by themselves they are somewhat stronger than Cannon, but are completely lacking in teamwork, trying to work alone. Cannon!RWBY are strong by themselves as well, but rely on teamwork (like a good team) to defeat their opponents, such as when Blake, Weiss, and Yang teamed up against Rose. And Rose has had a lot more intense training than Ruby, making her stronger than Ruby (for now). **

**Enough rambling, here's Chapter 14!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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She couldn't have been out for too long, or her Aura was still strong enough to prevent any major damage, but she woke up with her head pounding. She hissed a bit and opened her eyes and immediately a shadow moved over her. Glynda Goodwitch was standing over her, blocking out the sun. Rose squinted a bit and noticed that the blonde teacher was pissed, as her eyes were narrowed dangerously and her arms were crossed under her sizable chest. Not that Rose would mention that last part; Goodwitch was more of a sadist than Jaune on an average day, she just restrained it more in front of the students. _In detention however_… Rose shivered.

Despite that, Rose couldn't help but give a sarcastic quip. "So... Did I pass the test?" She would later blame that on the head injury. That, and not coming up with something better to say as well.

Goodwitch found that more than less than amusing as her scowl deepened and she tightened her grip on… the riding crop? _That's not her weapon,_ Rose thought as best she could, still disoriented from the head blow. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and tried to block out the pain, moving it to a dull throb in the background to be let out later. It was only temporary, but it would do for now.

Goodwitch gave a noise of disapproval and turned around and barked out orders. "Take Miss Belladonna to the infirmary. Miss Schnee, you should return there as well." There was the sound of movement, then the assistant Headmistress turned back to Rose. "And you Miss Rose are coming with me. You too Ms. Xiao Long. You're going to explain yourselves thoroughly to the Headmaster and then we'll decide your punishment."

"Can hardly wait," Rose drawled, but cowed under Goodwitch's glare. She waved her crop and Rose found herself drug standing up under the teacher's Semblance, then saw Bloody Rose come floating over for Goodwitch to grab and confiscate. _I'll get you back later, _Rose thought to her weapon. Goodwitch had also collected Burning Celica from Xiao Long as well, probably to avoid favoritism and lower the chances of another fight happening.

Rose was then practically frog marched along when Goodwitch prodded her. Rose started walking and looked around, smirking at the ring of students that were watching the spectacle, with the smirk widening as some of them flinched back when they met her eyes.

And if she could see herself she imagined that she presented a terrifying sight. A maniacal, bloodstained smile on her face, the blood being from her severely injured teammate that she herself had just wounded. _If that Dust crystal has changed Beacon and the people in it, then I've just moved up to the most dangerous person here probably. Some of these weaklings look like they're about to vomit on themselves, like they haven't seen blood before. _She sneered internally, mindful of Goodwitch's presence behind her and she didn't want to give another reason for her to punish her.

Though as she scanned the crowd, there was one person that didn't have a horrified face. In fact, it was downright thoughtful and calculating. Silver eyes met grey and they locked in, trying to read the other's thoughts through their eyes. _That's… Mercury. One of those two visiting students from Haven that I don't like. He's still suspicious, but as with everything that's been affected, he seems… different. There's something dark hidden under those eyes. I wonder what it is. Before it was more of a vague loathing and 'I can't wait to see you destroyed in a way that only I know' look that infuriated me. Now though there's something else. I'll have to keep a eye on him. _Apparently he found what he wanted as well and turned around and wet off somewhere. _What are you up to?_

Rose put that out of her mind, turned, and continued with where Goodwitch was taking them. Xiao Long had followed them, Rose joyfully noticing she was holding her side a bit gingerly. Xiao Long's eyes had gone back to lavender, but shifted back to red for a moment when Rose sent a mocking sneer her direction intending on riling her up. She immediately regretted that decision when Goodwitch smacked her riding crop against the side of her head hard. "Enough Ms. Rose. Don't make me do anything you'll regret until after we're through with the Headmaster."

Rose nodded and kept her mouth shut, knowing anything she says from this point on (and from a little bit ago as well) would be held against her. _Plus she has my weapon, and I don't particularly want to fight without it against both of them if it comes to that._

The long trek to the Commander's office, which even Goodwitch wasn't showing proper respect to by addressing him by his rank, gave Rose some time to mull over something that caught her by surprise_. I couldn't connect with my Grimm. I couldn't even feel their presence in my mind. That's another thing that's changed since that fucking Dust crystal, the constant presence in the back of my mind, the constant pressure felt and the willpower needed to control them isn't there anymore. I tried to call for them, but it's like the phone on the other end had lost signal and the number didn't exist in the first place. And I know the fault's not on my end since that test back in the infirmary showed I still had the right amount of Black Dust in my system. But I get the feeling that asking about that wouldn't be the best decision. Things are just too off, distorted. _

So Rose smartly kept her mouth shut and continued on till they got to the elevator to got to the Commander's office. Rose had to admit that it was brilliance on his part to locate his office inside the CCT, the landmark for the area and the place where you contacted the other kingdoms. It was a power move, allowing you to know that he was in control and though you could do what you wanted within reason, he let you know he was watching, like an overseer. _It's moves like that that made him the ruler of Remnant. Too bad those idiotic rebels and the White Fang scum don't follow him to greatness. _

Internally though, she was starting to panic a bit, despite her training and attempting to put her anxiety in the back of her mind. _I'm going to meet the Supreme Commander, the Headmaster of Beacon, and the practical ruler of Remnant about a disagreement turned brawl that caused my team to become wounded in some fashion, by my weapon. Now, regardless of how it started and what may have caused it, he will not be pleased, and I do not have a suitable excuse that he would like. Just stick with the facts, and do not embellish. Hopefully he is in a… forgiving mood. I don't want to experience the 'disciplinary chambers' in their full glory. Even the reduced form for training was enough for me. _Rose shivered unconsciously, unnoticing Xiao Long's and Goodwitch's stares.

All too soon, the elevator reached the top floor and with a mellow 'ding', the doors opened. The three of them went inside the room, but Rose headed straight to the center of the room and knelt, not meeting the Commander's eyes, and waited for him to speak.

* * *

"You're sure of this?"

"I wouldn't be making this up, it's too crazy," Mercury said lounging on one of the beds, picking imaginary dirt from under his fingernails.

"Plus you don't have that big of an imagination," Emerald drawled from where she was sitting in a chair, fiddling with her weapons.

"Ha-ha," Mercury deadpanned, "Though I am big in other ways."

Emerald fixed him with a stare. "Really? A dick joke?"

"Children, please," Cinder chastised. Both of them shut up, knowing they were far from Cinder's level. "Mercury, please continue."

"Well, she was full on psycho, trying to kill them. Though she wasn't taking it seriously, or as seriously as she could have. It was more of like trying to teach them a lesson; a more a spur of the moment thing brought on by emotions… and a bit of sadistic pleasure, like what you get sometimes," he added at the end.

"Do remember whom you're speaking to Mercury," Cinder said, her eyes taking on a brief glow in warning and amusement before she turned back to the scroll in her hands, going through the different programs. "However, I'll let that slide because of this interesting bit of news you brought me. You say she looked different?"

"Yeah. Swapped that red cloak of hers for a nice Grimm black color, and her weapon was different as well. It was serrated instead of a smooth blade. Also black," Mercury noted.

"Hmm, a weapon designed to cause more pain in return for a little extra energy using it," Cinder mused. "And what of the fight itself?"

"Oh that was a sight," Mercury sat up, interested in the retelling. "Her fighting style changed, and she used her semblance more than shooting herself around like she did before. In fact, I don't recall her ever firing her weapon. Anyway, she took on both her sister and her partner, leaving the Faunus girl stabbed in the gut with the spike at the end of her weapon. Then she licked the blood off of it and enjoyed it."

Emerald cut in, frowning. "The hell? That's like Torchwick's ice cream girl's level there. We're still talking about the same Ruby Rose, the one who thinks everything can be fixed with teamwork, friendship, and love?" Emerald seemed sick that those words in that order came out of her mouth.

"Obviously something's changed about her enough to want to try and maim her team. She also gave the stuck up Schnee bitch a second scar across her face, right here" Mercury said, pointing to his right eye and making a near horizontal line across it to just above his other eye.

"Indeed," Cinder said as she managed to use her program to access Beacon's rather lacklusterly protected surveillance cameras. For some reason, there were more cameras in the Emerald Forest than the entire school grounds. _Most likely due to initiation testing dear Ozpin forces the students to go through._ Cinder went through the recent footage and found the black clad Ruby Rose fighting against the blond and the black haired members of her team. She quirked an eyebrow when she saw Ruby stab Belladonna and then lick the blood off her weapon. _Indeed, much like dear sweet Neopolitan. I_ shiver _to think what those two would be able to do. _

A grin found its way onto her face as the fight progressed, ending with Goodwitch intervening and knocking out Ruby for a moment. "Very interesting…" Her eyes alight with curiosity. She looked up and saw that Emerald and Mercury had been watching as well. "You two: try and find out what caused our innocent little rose to become such a literal bloodthirsty individual. If this is something we can replicate, imagine who we could affect if we choose." The possibilities were widening to her. _If we could do this to anyone, imagine if say, Ozpin himself went on a rampage. _Pleasant goose bumps went up her back. _That would almost be enough of a distraction to go after _her_ by itself._

"However, be inconspicuous. There will be no doubt that an investigation will soon be done, and we do not need our cover blown yet. Use your best judgment in this."

"Yes Ma'am," Emerald answered. "And… what are you going to be doing?" She asked hesitantly, correctly wary of questioning her superior.

"Oh, I'm going to go right for the source…" Cinder almost purred as she stared into the unrepentant silver eyes of a changed Ruby Rose. Coming back to the present, she went to another folder on her scroll and deleted the girl's name from it, then went to another one and added her name with a _(?)_ at the end, the folder labeled _'Allies'_. _If I can recruit this new Ruby this plan might be even easier than I thought…_

* * *

Yang blinked at the kneeled form of… Ruby. _It doesn't feel right to call her my sister at the moment. Not after what she just did to Blake and Weiss. But she still is my littl' sis… _

The trip was silent, but Yang was watching Ruby, or Rose as she apparently wanted to be called. Ruby was trying to antagonize her and thankfully Prof. Goodwitch was there, otherwise it would have been round two and who knows what would have happened. _It's all because of that damn Dust crystal. It did something to Ruby and changed her. And then there's all that Black Dust in her body. That can't be coincidence_.

Once the all too long elevator ride was done and the doors opened, Ruby immediately brushed past them and went into the Headmaster's office without hesitation. Both she and Goodwitch twitched to stop her, thinking she was about to attack or do something rash, but then stopped in surprise when Ruby went to the center of the room and kneeled, like a knight before the kings of old. A corrupted knight.

_What the hell is she doing now? Why is she kneeling in front of the Headmaster?_ Yang looked up and saw that Ozpin's eyebrows were raised in a rare moment of surprise, unable to control his expression in time due to the unexpectedness of it all. Then they lowered back down further into a concerned frown. "Miss Rose, please stand up. There's no need for that."

After a moment's hesitation, Ruby stood up, but kept her head bowed. Yang followed Goodwitch into the room and stood a bit away from her changed sister. Goodwitch went over to Ozpin's desk and placed both of their weapons on it, then stood next to it.

It was silent in the clock tower, save for the ticking of said clock and the soft grinding of the gears turning it. Yang shifted from foot to foot nerviously. _I know I didn't do anything wrong, and that it wasn't really Ruby's fault since she's been affected by that Dust crystal, but that doesn't help. _Ruby however kept still, anticipating for whatever hammer waited to fall.

Eventually Ozpin spoke. "I do not believe I have words for what I've witnessed. I have seen training accidents where students were severely injured. I have also unfortunately seen bullying taken to extreme measures, and discrimination against Faunus that had degraded into violence, but I have never seen a student intentionally and maliciously attack another member of their team with the intent to cause bodily harm and disfigurement."

_Holy shit, he's pissed,_ Yang thought, looking at the man's body language. She could see that his fingers were tense and the frown he had had not abated in the slightest. _Though I am too, _she realized, _though not as much since I know something's wrong with Ruby. _Yang blinked as she realized a sobering fact. _I feel like I've failed my sister again… First it was _that_ night, and then now. I couldn't protect her, even if it's from herself. _

"So, Ruby Rose, please explain what was going through your mind and what led up to your decision to attack your team," Ozpin demanded, and then waited.

Ruby finally looked up and looked at Ozpin. "Commander Sir," she said sharply, surprising Yang at the militaristic tone coming from her sister, "my team was about to attempt to coerce me into doing a medical procedure that would have hampered my ability as a Huntress, Sir."

"And pray tell what sort of procedure would that be?" _Oh yeah, he's defiantly pissed._

"A complete purging of all the Dust in my system," Ruby told him.

Ozpin blinked, "And why would that be detrimental? Unless you've been trying to bind Dust into your body, then I do not see the problem. And the last I checked, your Dust scores were just adequate."

Ruby remained silent, though Yang could see the little tells she had that she was looking for an answer. _Damnit, even though she did all that, she's still my sister._ Yang stepped forward and cleared her throat, getting the two teacher's attention. "Actually Sir, there was something that happened in the Dust workshop a little bit before the infirmary thing."

She prided herself on the fact that she didn't flinch as both of them shifted their gazes to her. She was a little more surprised when Ruby did the same, confusion etched on her face, but Yang kept her focus on the teachers. "What happened?" Ozpin asked.

"Weiss had called us down there and gave us different things that she had been working on. But she gave Ruby a Dust crystal and when she activated it, it changed her to this. It's not her fault."

"That's not what happened," Ruby stated, her tone level but trying to keep it together. "That crystal affected you, and the rest of the school… somehow," she muttered, then turned to Ozpin with her head bowed again, "I apologize for my outburst Commander."

Ozpin frowned again then leaned forward a bit and said firmly, "Ruby, look at me."

Yang heard Ruby suck in a breath at her name, but the blacked cloaked sister did actually look up. _She really doesn't like her first name,_ Yang thought in slight awe at the amount of hate for a name. _One that our mom gave her. _

"I'm not in the army. I'm not a commander. I'm just a headmaster, presently yours, but only a headmaster. Now. What happened? Miss Xiao Long, you explain first. You said something about a Dust crystal?"

"Uh, yes. Weiss had been experimenting with different Dust combinations and had managed to make a Red-Black Dust crystal-"

Ozpin had been nodding then immediately frowned, an intense look on his face that took Yang aback. "Black Dust you said?"

"Uh, yes," Yang answered nerviously.

"How did she get that Dust?" Ozpin questioned.

"She said she made it," Yang answered.

Ozpin steepled his fingers and thought, then said, "Does anyone else on your team know how to make this Dust?"

Yang shook her head in a negative. _No, I certainly don't, Ruby's almost allergic to the stuff if it isn't in a bullet and can't use it. Blake probably could if she felt like it, but doesn't use Dust and probably won't go through the effort. _

Ozpin nodded, his posture slightly relaxing. "I'll have to have a talk with Miss Schnee after she's recovered and remind her about mixing Dust in untested forms. Which brings us back to the main issue, what were the effects of the… Black Dust crystal," Ozpin said, hesitating.

"Well, it was the two colors, and when Ruby added some White Dust to it and pushed her Aura into it, there was a bright flash, and then we saw that Ruby had changed to… this," Yang said gesturing to the different colored Ruby. Yang saw that Ruby's hands were clenching and unclenching repeatedly.

"When she woke up… her personality had been altered, a complete contrast to her usual self. She was more adversarial, rude, vulgar, and… she doesn't like it when we use her name, Ruby."

"You know I prefer to be called Rose, Sir," Ruby ground out, clearly frustrated with the entire situation. "And if I may speak, from my point of view, everyone else has changed. Even the school looks different."

"I would have to disagree with you on both accounts," Ozpin frankly said. "There have been no changes that I've noticed with anybody save you, and we've previously talked before and you've had no issues with others using your name."

Yang saw the confused look on Ruby's face as she was trying to figure things out. "I don't recall any moments where that happened…" She said slowly as if she was trying to explain something. Ruby looked up at Ozpin's face. "This whole thing was caused by a Dust crystal," she started explaining, "and putting aside the debate of who's right and who's not, this can be linked to what that crystal's affects were. And there's one person I know who can figure out exactly what the crystal did."

Goodwitch spoke up for the first time, "And who is that? Certainly not Miss Schnee."

"Oh fuck no," Ruby said, causing both the teacher's eyebrows to rise at the cursing. "As good as my pet may be, she is not even close to being an expert. Hell, even her family just mines and uses it with very little experimentation, letting others do the work for them. No, I'm talking about our mother. Contact her and she'll be able to solve this."

_What… No, that crystal had to have scrambled her mind. It's like before. She still thinks… Summer is alive._ "Ruby…" Yang started.

Ruby spun around, eyes flashing in rage, and only the quick reactions of Goodwitch prevented the sable clad girl from attacking Yang again. Ruby was shoved back a few feet and held there, not like when Goodwitch throws a Grimm down a city block. "I've told you before, do not call me-"

"Miss Rose!" Ozpin barked, and Ruby immediately stopped and kneeled again.

"My humblest apologies, Commander, for loosing my temper again," Ruby intoned. "My mind is not working at peak efficiency at the moment."

"Oh, get up," Ozpin irritably said, sounding exasperated with this entire thing. Ruby slowly stood up again. "Outburst aside, I feel that this Dust did more to your mind that to your appearance. I'll put it bluntly, and I do apologize for my lack of tact, your mother has been dead for years."

Yang sighed. _I know why you said that Professor, and why you said it the way you did. It's to help explain things to Ruby. But it still hurts._ Ruby snapped her head up at that. "You're joking… Sir," she added as an afterthought. "I spoke with her less than two weeks ago when you sent her on a mission." _What? How scrambled is your mind? What did it do to you?_

"That is impossible," Goodwitch stated. "Summer Rose has been deceased for over eleven years n-"

"Not that fucking whore cunt," Ruby spat out, shocking everyone again with the sheer amount of venom in her voice. "_Our_ mother," Ruby gestured wildly between Yang and herself, "Raven Branwen-Xiao Long… And what's that with her being dead?" Ruby added once she controlled herself, strangely sounding eager.

Yang gasped at the name. _That's_ my _mom_, she thought. _Ruby's never met her… and I think I've only _seen _her once in my life, and not in a picture. Why does she think she's our mom, and still married to dad, even with his last name? This does not make any Oum-damn sense! Not unless that crystal gave her new memories as well. And by now, I'm willing to consider anything!_

Ozpin sat still, staring at Ruby for a long moment. Yang could not tell what was going on behind those eyes of his aside from some heavy thinking. "Raven Branwen disappeared shortly after your sister's birth, Miss Rose, and there is no telling where she is, or if she's still active. And Summer Rose died in the line of duty eleven years ago, fighting against the Grimm. Your closest living and contactable relatives are your father and your Uncle Qrow, and even then Mr. Branwen is on a mission with a communication blackout. I do not know where or how you got these other thoughts, but it's increasingly clear that the crystal did something solely to you and not to us."

Ruby hadn't reacted since Ozpin restated that Summer had died, save to blink three times, but her eyes were wide and thoughts were flying about as fast as her semblance could go. _Ruby, what are you thinking about? What happened to your memories? _

After a long moment, Yang heard Ruby whisper to herself, "That's the only feasible explanation." Then, the most bone-chilling thing happened.

Ruby started laughing.

It wasn't a pleasant laugh. And it wasn't happy in the traditional sense. It was, in a word, unhinged. It started low and soft, then built up into a loud maniacal laugh that put everyone on edge due to the higher pitch of her voice. She was laughing so hard that she had doubled over.

"Miss Rose, control yourself!" Goodwitch shouted.

"It may not be real, but I don't even care anymore! The Bitch is dead!" Ruby crowed. "Ha ha ha ha!"

Yang felt the familiar fury descend on her mind. Without thinking she stomped over to Ruby and was about to slap her into tomorrow when suddenly the laughing stopped and a hand came up to deflect the slap. "Still too slow," Ruby taunted. Yang growled and reared up for another punch.

"Enough!" Ozpin shouted and suddenly a weight fell upon the room, making it hard to breathe and stay upright. Yang looked up and saw that Ozpin's eyes were glistening with anger as well before he blinked and breathed in, then the weight disappeared. "Miss Rose, since I do not have any other option available short of expulsion and prison, I am ordering you to go back to the infirmary and get a full Dust purge done."

"…Fine by me."

_Wait, what?_ Yang turned in surprise to face her sister. "What? You just agreed like that after you wanted to kill us when we suggested the same thing to you? What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Ruby turned her silver eyes to her and said dully, "Something apparently. Back then it… caught me off guard. I… admittedly overreacted. But rationally, this is the only solution to our conundrum. We're at an impasse, you think something happened to me, and I think something happened to all of you. The only variable is the Red-Black crystal, ergo getting a purge is the only solution that you will accept since there is more against me than for me."

"An astute observation Miss Rose," Goodwitch drawled.

"And you just only now thought of this?" Yang questioned.

Ruby shrugged noncommittally. Yang had to restrain herself. _Ruby's indifference to all of this is really grating on my nerves. Plus all that about mom… I don't know if I'll be able to forget that, and I hope it's only because of the crystal. _

Ozpin stared at Ruby for a moment before saying, "This incident will not go on your formal record Miss Rose. However, there will be a suitable punishment for your actions today and expect to be watched closely after this by the staff and most likely your team. I'll have to sort this out with the student body but expect some distance from them."

Ruby nodded, keeping silent. Ozpin looked at the weapons on his desk and said, "Can I trust you to keep your weapons and not use them?"

"I think the better question would be if either one of us will be the one to start something," Ruby said instead.

"You're not instilling confidence in yourself Miss Rose and you are already treading on thin ice," Ozpin glared at her.

Ruby nodded again, with a bow, "Forgive me Commander." Ozpin just made a noncommittal grunt.

Yang looked back and forth between Ruby and Ozpin._ I want to believe that this was caused by the Dust crystal, and her emotions and memories have been affected by that…_ "If my sis follows that, then I will as well," she said.

Ozpin gave both of them a hard look. "Very well. Glynda, please escort them to the infirmary and make sure Miss Rose does in fact start the purge. You two may take your weapons. I hope my trust isn't misplaced."

Ruby walked forward and took her now black weapon and hooked it onto her back again. Yang then tentatively came forward and took Ember Celica again and put them on again.

"Come along you two," Goodwitch said sternly, making Ruby snap upright. The professor gestured for the two to enter the elevator ahead of her, and the two followed. This has to be some sort of bad dream. I just hope that this is solved when the Dust is purged from her system. The doors closed and the elevator began its decent.

* * *

Ozpin sighed and held his head after the trio had left. _That was worse than when I had to deal with Team STRQ's graduation party and half of the other incidents they had combined. No, this is more serious than that. It's closer to when Amber was attacked and half her power stolen. And much more concerning since I can't take permanent action this time. _His concern boiled down to two words.

Black Dust.

Two words put together that he had not heard in a long time. And two words he wanted to forget as they led to a darker time, and a decision that could have tipped the scales to the darkness.

"Even after all this time, you still come back to haunt me Vikstein," Ozpin murmured to himself. "And I thought I had dealt with the last of your projects years ago. Once again they come to the surface, but from a completely isolated variable. Is it fate that it should be discovered again?" After thinking about it he shook his head. _No, it must not. The consequences would be too vile to imagine even with the things I've seen. So far set against our principals that it can't even be considered. I made my choice when he offered, and I stand by it as the right one. That was not a mistake in this case. I only wish that I could have seen it sooner to save my friend…_

Ozpin sighed again and poured himself some coffee, then took a sip_. I have to emphasize the importance to Miss Schnee to never make Black Dust again. If it were to fall into the wrong hands it would be an added weapon for them. In even the right hands it could spell the downfall of us all. _

_And then there's the paperwork for this, and trying to calm the student body. And I can't let Ruby's family know because they'd come storming Beacon despite anything. _

"Damn," he whispered to himself. _It's times like this where I wonder if Qrow has the right idea about Mistralean Rum. Or even James with the Atlas variety._ He took another sip of coffee then got to work.

* * *

The elevator doors closed in front of Rose and while she kept a calm outward façade, inside her mind was in turmoil, racing to plan ahead.

Inside the Commander's… or Ozpin's office, she had an epiphany as she finally thought things through and gathered enough information. _And once you eliminate the impossible, what remains... And despite how insane it is, it might be the best guess there is. _

_I'm in a different Remnant. _

_And the evidence backs that up. My team and everyone else acting differently for one. There's no way that they would be able to keep up the act for this long, especially Xiao Long. Another is that there's too many little differences, both in the building and with how the people appear. And then there's the elaborate history story that they keep saying. Everything is different, or has happened in different ways. Schnee said her scar, her first scar now actually, happened before we knew each other, while she was training. Now that I think about it, it does look older and less fresh. _

_Then there's the family history._ _Raven's gone somewhere, and Summer's dead…_ that thought made her giddy, _even if it isn't _my _Summer, and the time means that Xiao Long would think that Summer would be her mom as well, if she's as pathetic as I think she is._ She almost chuckled aloud, but contained it, mindful of the deal they made. _Oh that's delicious, left by two moms. If I could, I probably would use that against her if we came to blows again. _

_But back on topic, a hallucination wouldn't be this involving, and I would have noticed something off about my senses. I may not be a Faunus, but I know my own capabilities. A torture/interrogation scenario would have the same problems. And… admittedly, it does make more sense that I was the only one affected by the Dust crystal, rather than the entirety of the school. _

_That's why I'm going to allow them to purge the Dust from my system. If I'm correct and I am in an alternate Remnant, then my Grimm wouldn't be here anyway, so there's no sense in having the Black Dust in me. And also, they think that the Dust caused this in the first place, so they'll only be less on guard once it's out of me. _

_However, I doubt that what they want won't happen, so I'll have to deceive them after my purge. Claim partial amnesia so that will give me time to learn about this world and the people in it, and also some leeway if I make a mistake or say something wrong. 'I think the Dust affected my memory, things are hazy.' If they are truly as pliable as I think, they'll accept that. _

_Ozpin is the one I need to watch out for. He knows what Black Dust does somehow, judging from his reaction to the name. I'll have to be cautious if I want to rebuild my Grimm pack again. I wonder if that Nevermore from initiation is still around… _

_Basically, I can make this world my bitch if I wanted. But then there are other factors to consider. Mercury and his partner_erer_ Emerald_, she had to search for the name for a moment, _have some sort of plan that would probably rock the inexperienced students' lives. And I wonder if the White Fang and those Ember Rebels are still around. Something I'll have to research when I get the chance._

_There's one other thing, now that I think about it. Is there, or was there, another Rose- or Ruby in this case? Did that Dust crystal switch us around? Or did I wipe her out when I came here, replaced her with myself? More food for thought. _

While she had been thinking, they had gone through the halls and courtyards of Beacon. Word apparently had spread around as people were pointing and whispering without trying to appear like they were doing such a thing. Rose kept a blank face as they walked, showing no emotion.

By the time she had finished her thoughts, they had returned to the infirmary. Goodwitch pushed open the doors and walked in, Xiao Long and Rose following. There was a closed off area where there were a few doctors working on somebody, and with Schnee close by, that somebody was probably Belladonna.

Goodwitch got a doctor's attention, and it turned out that it was Dr. Gold again. He frowned as his gaze went over them. "What?" He said, coldly.

"Miss Rose needs to get a Dust purge. We think that it's the cause for her… behavior," Goodwitch explained.

"It better be. Her teammate will recover quickly, but it won't heal up in a day, and won't completely heal for longer. And Miss Schnee will have a second permanent scar on her face. Rose took a glance over at Schnee and was met by a wary blue eye.

Not wanting to delay, Rose said, "Let's just get this over with." She went over to the bed which still had her bag next to it and placed her weapon next to it. Then she hopped on and waited. When nothing happened she looked up and met to doctor's eyes. "Well get on with it! I can't operate it on my own!" That snapped him out of his whatever and he went into the back room.

"What's going on?" Rose heard Schnee ask from her side of the room.

"Miss Rose finally agreed to get a Dust purge of her system," Goodwitch said again. "It appears that whatever crystal you made has affected her memory and emotions, so we're going to clear out her body completely of Dust. On a side note, the Headmaster would like to speak with you at some point about your creation."

"Oh, of course," Schnee said.

Rose was distracted when Xiao Long came over to her side. Her lavender eyes were filled with concern, which Rose never expected to be on her face. "It'll be okay Rubes," Xiao Long said, surprising Rose with the nickname. "Everything will turn out fine. There's no need to be worried."

_Wow, she actually believes that she cares. And she's trying to comfort_ me. _That's defiantly another point for an alternate world._ Rose swallowed and said, "I'm not worried. It's a procedure that's been done numerous times."

Xiao Long blinked, then tried to smile, but it came out wrong- forced. "I guess you did pay attention in Dust Studies then."

Rose was spared from having to make a response when the doctor wheeled a machine over to her. It was both complex and simplistic in what it was meant to do. "This is a-"

"I know what it is," Rose interrupted, "just get it on."

The doctor showed no outward sign of irritation, but he definitely poked the rather large needle in her arm a little harder than necessary. Once again, not rating on her pain scale. Another needle entered her other arm, and both of them found a vein for them to work.

"There will be some slight discomfort, like something is being taken away and going missing, which is perfectly normal," he explained, staying professional.

"I'm ready," Rose said.

The doctor started the machine and with a hum, started injecting the nullifying agents to the Dust. The agent it used was handy, but it didn't differentiate between the different types of Dust, which is why it was only used for complete purging.

Rose definitely felt some discomfort, as it felt as if something was being torn away from her. Eventually this did start rating on her pain scale, and didn't seem to be stopping. It kept increasing and Rose started to hear shouting and screaming from the people around her.

In the back of her mind, she realized she was the one who was screaming.

Pain.

That was all she felt. It was as if someone was trying to rip out your skin and bones without actually doing so. Vaguely, she felt her body start thrashing, convulsing.

The pain didn't stop.

It kept going.

She felt hands on her, but she wanted them off. They were trying to stop her! She needed to get out!

Numbness started spreading, starting from her toes, upwards her body. She felt emptier inside than she ever had. When it reached her head, her last thought was, _At least I know it worked. _

Then blackness.

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

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**Ha-ha! Rose gets her own version of pain! It's less than what Ruby experienced, but it's not over yet. The next chapter will have more. **

**Somebody pointed out, and I agree, that Rose is like Azula from Avatar:TLA. Azula is a bit of a reference for me when I'm writing Rose, and she reads situations better than Ruby, and plots a lot better too. **

**Anyway, I was in a slump for this chapter and I apologize if this seems like a weak chapter.  
Another somebody pointed out (rightfully so) that the last couple chapters were shorter than the others. Basically it's like Rose's version of the first few chapters, which were shorter than these ones, as the title of this mirrors Ch 3's. Though things will start diverging in similarly next chapter, so be patient. **

**I was planning on updating An Unexpected Rose today, but things got away from me (midterms are this week) and I spent more time on this than that. Promise the next update will be that.**

**Big thanks to everyone who read this story, and remember to R.R.F.F (Read, Review, Favorite, Follow)**

**-OrangeGalen**


	15. For Your Safety

**Hello everybody and welcome back! I got done with my last final today so why not celebrate with a new chapter! Yay! Several reasons why I couldn't update this as much as I liked, but mainly I hit a small writing slump that I'm working over now. So here's the new chapter!**

**We're also a quarter of the way to a 1,000 Favorites! Hoo-rah!**

**So right now, my update schedule is to get out a new chapter for RWBHY: The Aura Mage next, and soon another for On The Road, Far From Home which has about 7,000 words written for the next chapter (and that's only a third of the length I'm estimating it'll be). Hope to see that soon! **

**Anyway, enjoy! (Warning: some time skips, but nothing too bad)**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY**

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**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

_Two days later…_

Yang paced back and forth across their dorm room's floor; retracing the steps that she had made several hundred times previously. At the rate she was going, she was literally going to wear a groove in the floor, regardless of the reinforcements it had. Her inner thoughts were providing more than enough fuel to continue her pacing.

"Yang… please," she vaguely heard her partner plead from her bed, but she shook her head and ignored her, continuing her pacing.

"No. I can't. I can't stop thinking about what I should have done. What Ruby's going through," Yang murmured, almost to herself. _Was I not fast enough? Did I do something? Why didn't I stop her from using that crystal? We both knew she was pants at practical Dust usage, but I still let her try, even when it didn't seem to be working. I _should _have done something._

"Yang, please listen. It wasn't your fault. If anything it was mine," Weiss said from her own bed, sounding regretful. "You told me that Ruby wasn't good with Dust, but I still gave her that… that damn crystal…"

"But I should have done something!" Yang shouted suddenly, breaking her stride momentarily to gesture wildly.

"Yang! You didn't know! I didn't know! Ruby didn't know! Literally nobody could have predicted what could have happened!" Weiss shouted back, standing up, the bandages on her face adding to her intimidation. While most of the wound was healed and mainly superficial, Weiss had a second scar on her face starting from the cheekbone just below her right eye socket to above her left eye, the two scars separated by an inch and a half. The bandages were the smaller kind for spots that hadn't quite healed yet.

"She's right," Blake added, though she remained lying on her bed on her right side. Her wound was more serious and while it was stitched up and healing, it was still sore and bandaged, leaving Blake unable to lie on her left. Even being on her back was a little harder than before. However the doctors said she should be fine in time for the combat tournament for the Vytal Festival as long as she didn't push herself in the meantime.

"We didn't know what would have happened. We don't have foresight. We can't predict what happens. But beating yourself up about it isn't going to help in the slightest. You're only wearing yourself down like I did," Blake reminded her of a few weeks ago when she was hurting herself in her pursuit of information on the White Fang. "Take your own advice," Blake said firmly, but peacefully.

Yang looked at both of them, but then her gaze drifted to their wounds and she turned away in shame. _This is my fault. They got hurt because I didn't stop Ruby. I failed as a teammate and as a sister again. I could have stopped this from happening. _

There was a familiar sound and then she found herself falling towards the floor when her foot resisted moving after she resumed pacing. She braced for impact but after a few seconds she strangely hadn't felt her face collide with the carpet yet. She looked down (across) and saw her hands and feet were being held up by five small glyphs that Weiss had conjured, with the additional one around her abdomen. After a moment they faded allowing her to cover the extra few inches to flop on the floor with an '_oof_!'

"Well, that's one way to get her to stop," Blake commented dryly after a moment.

Weiss was leaning over Yang's head after she had rolled over. "What was that for?" Yang questioned without any heat.

"That was for being an idiotic barbarian. The constant pacing was grating on my nerves," Weiss said haughtily, though they could tell she didn't mean it. She dropped the attitude and sighed. "Listen, we all have ways we could, or should, take the blame, but there isn't any reason to blame anyone in the first place, least of all yourself. Ruby will be fine after she recovers and we'll all have her back."

It was a testament to how distracted Yang was that she didn't try to make any insinuations on that comment about Weiss wanting Ruby. She just sighed and nodded, still lying on the floor. "I know, I just can't stop thinking that way."

"And that's okay, but just don't let it control you," Blake said with a knowing smile.

There was a knock on the door and being the only one up at the moment, Weiss answered it.

"Hey Weiss," came the voice of the leader of JNPR. He was standing outside the room with Pyrrha next to him.

"Hello Pyrrha. Jaune." Weiss nodded to each of them, a slight hesitation on the male's name. A holdover from when he continuously tried to hit on her.

"Everything alright?" Jaune asked, glancing down at Yang who gave a wave in returned, entirely unconcerned she was still on the ground.

"We're working to get towards that point," Weiss honestly said. "We're just having a little conversation to resolve some issues that aren't anybody's fault."

"Ah. I see," he said, clearly not.

"Any new news on how Ruby's doing?" Pyrrha asked, moving the conversation along.

She was rewarded with three headshakes. "No. She's still unconscious from the Dust removal, but shakes when she's closer to consciousness," Blake answered.

There was somber silence among _WBY as they remembered that first day and the days that followed.

* * *

_Two days previous…_

Yang watched as Dr. Gold put the needles in Ruby's arms. "There will be some slight discomfort, like something is being taken away and going missing, which is perfectly normal," he explained to Ruby.

"I'm ready," Ruby said, looking bored with the whole thing.

The doctor started the machine and with a hum, started injecting the nullifying agents to the Dust. _I hope this works Ruby, to get you back to normal,_ Yang thought as she watched.

She saw the machine doing its work as a graph appeared, showing the percentage purged and what was in Ruby's system. Ruby started getting twitchy, starting out as slight jerks but then started spasming.

"Something's wrong!" The doctor said, saying the words right from Yang's worst nightmare.

"What is it?" She asked in a panic.

"I'm not sure, she's reacting a lot worse than-" Whatever he was about to say was cut off when Ruby started screaming. A sudden wave of cold washed over Yang, worse than any she had felt before. Her sister was screaming in pain, trying to rupture her vocal chords in agony.

"Hold her down!" The doctor barked, looking Yang in the eyes. She only hesitated a split second before she rushed over and held Ruby down by her arms, almost leaning over her, pinning her to the bed to keep her from hurting herself.

"Ruby! I'm here! Everything's going to be okay!" Yang shouted to her, trying to keep her calm. Predictably it didn't seem to be working as the thrashing continued, though not for long.

In retrospect, Yang could recall how Ruby blacked out from the pain. First her legs stopped moving and it progressed upwards from there until Ruby finally breathed out and slumped back onto the bed, dead to the world.

Yang shakily let go of her sister and staggered back, shaken by what she just witnessed. "What the hell happened?" She asked, her tone dull, in shock.

Dr. Gold didn't answer immediately and was looking at the machine intensely, going over the data provided. After a moment he looked up and gazed into nothing. "Of course, how didn't we realize it?"

"Realize what? What the _hell_ didn't you get?" Yang asked, her voice rising.

"Miss Rose had that Black Dust in her body, in her cells. There was a lot of it and it apparently bonded with her body. It had adapted and grown used to it, accepting it as a part of her. And when we tried to remove it…"

"Dust Withdrawal Syndrome." The two turned and saw that Weiss had come closer. A slightly stained bandage covered her right eye and was wrapped around her head, covering her wound. She was looking paler than usual, but with the dazed look on her face it could be attributed to shock as well.

The doctor nodded but Yang was confused. "What's that?" She asked, almost not wanting to know the answer. She wasn't the best with Dust knowledge, going for a more practical usage, the opposite of Ruby in that respect.

"It's a slightly uncommon occurrence, but it happens when one uses too much raw powder or crystal Dust over a long time, or _a lot_ in a short time, or merges it with their body. There have also been reports of it happening to… workers… in my family's company who mined Dust from the quarries," she said, clearly uncomfortable talking about the dirty secrets her grandfather's company had, and clearly meaning something else other than 'workers'.

"The Dust merges with their body and they grow accustomed to having it in them. When it's taken out so suddenly…"

"It's like cutting off a drug addict from their supply without weaning them off," Dr. Gold finished.

Yang was horrified. In her travels through Vale she had gone into the shadier parts of town and had once seen a homeless addict on the sidewalk clearly in a high, the needle still in his arm. Then she saw another man coming down from it. He was twitching and moaning, begging to anyone that passed for more of the stuff, barely able to be coherent. Those images haunted her for weeks afterwards and she avoided that section ever since. The reality that her sister was basically in the same position as those men terrified her almost as bad as _that_ day, when she almost lost her to her stupidity. Possibly even worse because she had to see her sister suffer.

"S-so s-she's…?"

"For all medical purposes, a recovering drug addict, except the drug was Dust," the doctor said. "She's going to have a hard time recuperating and adjusting to the loss of Dust." He sighed and turned to Yang, but also made glances at Weiss as well. "I owe you two an apology for your sister and leader. I misjudged and didn't fully analyze both the amount of Dust and how combined it was with her body, and have possibly severely damaged her."

"That's… okay," Weiss said slowly, but the doctor cut her off.

"No, it's not. I'll put it in my report to the Headmaster and will go on a temporary leave of absence to renew my medical license. It's something I need to do."

Yang didn't respond, but thought, _that's a tad extreme, but it's what you deserve a bit for causing my sister more harm through your negligence._ "So… what do we do now?" She asked softly.

"Now? Now we wait and watch, taking care of her when she wakes up. Her system just went through a shock and she has a few hard days ahead of her. All you can do right now is be there for her when she wakes up and is capable of rational thought."

Yang looked at her sister, dressed in different clothes, on the bed. She wasn't in an easy sleep as her face was crossed with a frown, an echo of pain and agony on it. Yang closed her eyes, but the image stayed. The image of one of her nightmares.

Ruby wouldn't be the only one to not get a peaceful sleep.

* * *

_Present…_

"She's in for a hard recovery. That stupid Dust did a number on her," Weiss said, clearly upset, "so she will have a longer time recuperating."

"So… it's bad?" Jaune asked, hesitant to know the answer.

"Have you seen her?" Yang asked quietly, silencing all, her voice dull. "She twitches when she's asleep, and when she wakes for brief moments, they're cut off in agony." _I can still see her when she's awake, crying out in pain, holding herself tightly in a ball to try and stop the pain. She had to be strapped down to keep from throwing herself off the bed in a fit._ Yang ducked her head and held her arms close.

"And how are the rest of you?" Ren asked. "How are you taking everything?"

"Honestly, it could always be better," Blake said. "But we're… recovering," she looked at her bandage on her stomach. "Some better than others." Weiss shrugged, the only one of the two out of their bandages. She was lucky to keep her eye; just a fraction of a centimeter deeper and she would have either needed to have an eye patch or an ocular implant; a robotic eye, which is expensive, even for a Schnee.

They all knew Ruby wasn't in her right state of mind, but the amount of sanity and reason that she displayed during the brief hour she was inundated with that Black Dust unnerved all of them. The methodical precision she used and the different style of combat she employed were nothing like they were used from the innocent girl they knew. And the way she was thinking and acting, reserved and cut off, but then gleeful at the terror and agony she caused.

Then there was the way her mind was distorted, facts and people twisted into a fake facsimile of reality. They were all afraid that Ruby wouldn't come back the same. They _knew_ she wouldn't, at least, not completely as she was before.

But that wasn't all…

"We're all worried about her, but… we're starting to think that something affected her, or the things that were on her… more than before," Weiss said.

"Well she was wearing more black than before," Nora said, thinking aloud, "and she seemed as crazy as me! Just crueler…" she muttered harshly.

"There's more," Yang said, going over to a drawer and pulling out Crescent Rose, or whatever weapon Ruby was using then. Before the sniper scythe was mainly red with black. Now it was just black. And that was just the color scheme. Yang, using years old rusty skills from helping her sis forge her weapon, activated the weapon and it unfolded into its full scythe mode, making sure to keep it clear from the beds and people. "The blade's changed," she pointed out the now serrated scythe blade, dried blood still glaringly on some teeth, "and the rifle part has been altered, now firing a three shot semi-automatic burst instead of her single shot bolt action. And it can't fire whilst in scythe mode."

"How can Dust alter weapons like that?" Pyrrha asked. "I know there are some arcane methods for weaving it into clothing, or using it in their weapons but nothing like this."

"It should be impossible," Weiss stated. "There have been tests that my father's company has done, and while there were changes, the entire weapon design wasn't… distorted and changed like this. If I hadn't seen it up close," she winced a bit and her eye twitched at her word play, "I wouldn't have thought it possible, but… as you can see…"

"So something else must have happened then," Jaune supplied suddenly. "Something outside of what you've thought of. You're right, there must be more things that Dust she used did."

"But without further testing we can't be certain," Ren said.

"And Professor Ozpin warned me away from making more of that Dust," Weiss said, "especially untested Dust in an uncontrolled environment."

"Indeed," came a familiar voice.

* * *

Ozpin hid his smirk behind his coffee mug as he took a sip, looking at the surprised faces of the two teams. That was one of the little things he enjoyed and he had been called a Troll at some point by students. In fact Summer Rose was the person that really started that. Remembering her however lowered his mood, but he still kept up the act.

"Ah! Oh, hello headmaster," Jaune Arc said, startled at his sudden appearance.

"Hello Mr. Arc," Ozpin greeted the leader of JNPR, one of two first year teams that he was very interested to see how they developed during their time at Beacon. But with things seemingly heading to a tipping point, it was imperative that a decision needed to be made.

And although he hated to turn people into chess pieces (initiation relics aside), these two teams were definitely the knights, with a bishop or two waiting to be discovered.

However, something had turned Ruby from the figurative white piece, to a black, or very dark grey piece. And he could only hope that the change was temporary, though the signs pointed to a negative on that.

"Was there something you needed?" Pyrrha Nikos asked.

"Yes, and though it mainly concerns Team RWBY, you may want to hear what I have to say," he answered the girl.

"We're here," Weiss Schnee said, notifying him that they were all there sans leader.

"If I may come in?" He asked.

"Of course," the white haired girl replied.

"Thank you," he said, and looked at the heiress. He stepped inside the… unique dorm room and had to glance around at the beds. "I have to say I've never seen such a interesting set-up for a dorm before."

"The idea was Ruby's after some… initial reservations," Weiss replied.

Ozpin looked at the hanging bed. "I can see why."

"I hate to be rude," Yang Xiao Long said, earning a snort from someone, "but is there anything about Ruby? Any change?" Ozpin looked at the girl. _She looks like Miss Belladonna did leading up to the dance. It's good that she's concerned about her sister, and I hope I can give her news that she considers good. _

"There has been some," he acknowledged. "Dr. Gold said that the worst of it is probably over and she should be regaining control over her mental and physical faculties sometime soon. In fact, he reckons that she should be lucid in an hour or two."

"Does that mean we can visit her?" Blake Belladonna asked, trying to sit up.

"Please rest Miss Belladonna," Ozpin said, trying to get her to relax and not aggravate her wound. "It will be in an hour and I'll notify you all when that is.

"However," he altered his tone, "regarding her earlier actions-"

"She wasn't in control of herself!" Yang interrupted.

"Yang! Don't interrupt the headmaster!" Weiss scolded.

"It's alright Miss Schnee," Ozpin said, gesturing to placate her. "I understand her concerns. Although don't let it become a habit," he gave a pointed look at the yellow haired girl.

She lowered her head, chastised, "Yes Sir."

"Now then," Ozpin continued. "While she may not have been in her usual state of mind, certain precautions must be taken and protocol needs to be followed. When it is decided she can hold a conversation and is in control of her mental state, we will have to keep a close watch on her."

They all nodded, understanding. "I will talk with Miss Rose and determine if everything is alright with her, but regardless she will be monitored for a few weeks as it would be remiss of us to allow Miss Rose full freedom in the school at the time." Again they nodded, but not with enthusiasm.

He sighed, here comes the hard part that I don't want to tell them. "I will be frank with all of you. Ruby may not, or rather will not, be the same afterwards. Whether that will be because she'll remember what she did under the influence of the Dust crystal, or because it altered her mind in some way. Unfortunately, there is no way to tell which as there's only one person that can see inside her mental state, but as of right now he's in no condition to resume his profession."

_It's darkly ironic that Dr. DuFrense, one of best doctors of a generation, degraded because of a mental illness, when he's the only one that can see mental illnesses. A split personality where the Omega half, as he calls himself, is completely unsuited for being among people. Though slightly amusing,_ Ozpin thought privately. _I never actually thought of what oblivion actually tasted like before I talked with him, and I do have to agree, it would probably taste like Red Toro. Disgusting stuff. _

_Unfortunately, he was another one of my numerous mistakes. Yet another life I ruined in this shadow war. _

Moving past his thoughts he continued. "Regardless, one must not give up hope and when Ruby is cleared to leave I know that you will all support her in whatever way she needs."

"Of course," Blake nodded.

"We will," Weiss agreed.

"She's my sister, I'll do anything for her," Yang stated as if it were obvious, which it partially was.

Ozpin nodded and turned to JNPR, "I trust she'll have your support as well?"

"Yes sir," Jaune said immediately, vouching for his team. "No doubt about it."

"Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some things I need to take care of. Oh!" _I can't believe that almost slipped my mind. I must be getting old._ "Miss Schnee," she looked up and snapped to attention, "you have gotten rid of all of the Black Dust?"

"Yes sir, I disposed of it in the proper manner. Even the ones in Ruby's bag," she answered.

"Excellent. And just a reminder, please do not make any more. This… discovery should not go beyond us here."

"Of course…" Weiss said, but trailed off.

"Do I sense a question?" Ozpin asked, knowing what she was going to ask.

"Yes… sir. Do you know what that type of Dust does?"

Ozpin sighed. "Yes, I do," he replied simply. "But you must trust my judgment when I say it should never be used." That statement brought stunned looks from both teams. Ozpin took another sip of coffee. "I will let you know when your sister and leader is awake to talk to, but remember what I said."

"Yes Headmaster," Yang dully replied.

Ozpin nodded and walked out, JNPR giving room for him to exit. As he walked away from the student dorms he sighed once again to himself. _I truly hope that the effect of this particular combination of Dust is temporary, but I have come to expect the worst. There was something familiar about the dark Ruby that was a little too… unnerving to picture on her face, in those silver eyes. Despite not being in the right frame of mind, she was thinking a little too clearly. Is that the madness of the Black Dust? To sink so far into insanity that one comes out the other side? I can't think such macabre ideas. I have to believe that Ruby will come back to us. _

_As much pressure as it is, she may be one of the pieces to save our world._

* * *

Pain.

Every nerve was on fire and doused in liquid nitrogen at the same time, overloading her nervous system time and time again.

She had no control over her body, her thoughts, as the overwhelming pain of _emptiness_ covered her and filled up the gaps in her. Slithering their way into every cell of her body, utter agony overtaking all. There was no concept of time as the few brief instances she could feel something else other than burning fire or fridged ice were far in-between.

Her mind recoiled from the pain as it tried to block it out, unsuccessful in all but a scarce few times, retreating inwards as it tried to keep itself whole and sane. Loss. That was the other feeling besides pain that she could sense. Something important was missing. But with the torture she was going through at the time she couldn't analyze it fully to break it down into parts, by the numbers.

Gradually, as if fighting to get out of a long dark corridor with only the slightest hint of a pinprick of light at the end, the pain lessened. Time was indistinguishable between hours or seconds as she went to the light. Bit by agonizing bit, her nerves stopped spasming as vigorously and her mind achingly slowly put itself back together.

Eventually, the pain diminished, replaced by pure numbness throughout her entire body. The slightest feeling of fabric, as if a gentle puff of air was covering her, was all that she could feel.

She was tired. So tired. Everything felt like it was ten times harder. Breathing was laborious, and even thinking was difficult as she was fighting through a thick haze, like seeing through the fog Xiao Long and Pet made one time while fighting.

_Wait. I remember that? I can think that? I… I am aware…_ Even with that realization, thinking didn't come easier, but as was her method, she started on a linear thought process, just trying to get things working, the connections reformed again.

_I feel cold. Empty. Weak. Numb. Why? Why do I feel like this? It… hurts… Get a grip. Force it down. You can do this. You've done this before during… training, yes, training. To be a Huntress. To be strong. To be feared. _

_To be powerful. _

Sheer determination and willpower erupted in her. With only a portion of her mind now able to think, she grabbed onto it and crawled her way through the mental muck her mind was stuck in. Pain and other feelings returned, or had never left, but now that she was aware, she pushed them back. They didn't leave as her body wasn't healed from whatever it was that put her in this state, but the more she pushed, the more she cleared out until…

With a groan brought on by exhaustion and pure weakness, silver eyes creaked open to the sight of Beacon's medical ward ceiling. _Oh. Just the sight I want to see, _she thought dryly. _Now why am I here? Is it because something happened and that's why I'm so weak? Why can't I remember? Well, actually I can answer that myself: my brain hasn't cleared out all the gunk from it yet. Plus I have a headache, but I'll get that under control soon. _

She glanced around and saw that there were a few needles and tubes in her, plus a monitoring device. _First things first, get my body under control._ She started doing basic tests, moving toes and fingers, and then gradually trying to move entire limbs. It was agonizing as her body didn't want to move and everything felt numb, like her blood circulation had been cut off and was returning with those pinpricks that come with it, save that she felt them in her bones.

_Agh! I feel like the day after the gauntlet uncle Qrow and mom put me through. No, the_ week _afterwards. Surviving a week in the Grimmlands of Patch and then putting up my best fight against both of them immediately upon returning. Though it was worth it, I definitely got stronger from that. _

She snorted, remembering something. _Xiao Long only lasted five days out of the week before returning. Though admittedly, she had a slightly rougher time after fighting a Goliath that had somehow got onto the island. Still pretty fuckin' pathetic. _

She tried to lift her arm and now felt the strength to do so, but now there was an external force preventing her from lifting her arm higher than an inch. She lifted up her head, albeit slowly and with much willpower, and saw that there were straps holding her down on her arms, legs, and across her stomach. _Why the hell are those there?_ She tried to move again, and only succeeded in clanking them around.

The sound of a curtain being drawn and then she saw a familiar doctor. However, she couldn't quite place him right then. "Miss Rose, you're awake! Can you understand me?"

"Yeeerrs," Rose tried to say, but her mouth and vocal chords protested, irritating her throat and causing her to cough far too feebly for her. Her throat was somewhat inflamed, she could feel it.

"Here," the doctor said, holding a glass of water with a straw in it.

_This is pathetic, being watered through a straw,_ Rose thought, disgusted with herself at her weakness. Nevertheless, she got the straw in her mouth and gleefully drunk the water, feeling the refreshing cool slide down her throat. "I added a anti-inflammatory mix to the water so your throat should be feeling better within the day, _provided Ozpin doesn't talk to you for too long_." He mumbled the last part, but Rose could hear every word as she was paying attention.

_The Supreme Commander wants to talk to me? Why? What did… _Suddenly everything came back to her, as if most of the fog had cleared. _The Red-Black crystal, how everything and everyone changed, stabbing Belladonna and giving Pet a new scar. Getting the Dust purged from me. And the most important realization: this isn't my world. _

Her eyes widened as she realized what that entailed, then quickly schooled her expression, shutting off her emotions to cool logic and reason. She got back on track. "Than' you," she said, not being able to make sharp consonant sounds.

Dr. Gold, she remembered his name, only blinked once in surprise before nodding. "You're welcome. Now, do you feel any pain or achiness?" Rose was not going to respond but then thought about it. _Lying isn't going to get me any help. As much as I hate it, people let their guard down around those they think are weak. So, for now, I'll play the part of a recovering amnesiac until I can thoroughly understand this world. _

Without speaking she nodded. The doctor also nodded. "That's to be expected. The extraction of the Dust in your body was more extreme than I thought it would be and didn't anticipate the amount that had bonded to you. That's why you're so weak, since your body is trying to adapt without something that it had become accustomed to. The best comparison is a recovering drug addict."

Rose didn't need to fake the expression of disgust that flashed across her face. _Absolutely fucking pathetic. I would never have imagined in all my life being compared to a fucking druggie. It's disgraceful._

The doctor misinterpreted her expression slightly. "Don't worry. From what I've seen you're recovering fairly well. You should be up and about in a few days, and fully recovered by the Vytal Festival."

Swallowing her pride, Rose asked, "What happnn? Why deze?" She rattled the restraints a bit to draw attention to them.

The doctor frowned, part in worry, and the other in professional concern. "Do you remember how you got here?"

_Oh I do; the battle with the alternate teammates, the Surpreme Com- no, just the Headmaster here, the Dust purge. Then pain. _She, however, lied and shook her head, frowning in what appeared to be confusion, but in actuality about the blackout pain she felt, and still felt slightly.

Dr. Gold then asked. "What do you remember? Anything specific?"

Rose once again acted like she was thinking, then shook her head. "All jumbled up. I feel different." _That I do._

"Okay then, I'll have to ask you a few basic questions then to verify my hypothesis. What's your name?" He asked, bringing out his lab Scroll.

"Rose, Ruby," she replied automatically, feeling it was easier to talk now that the medicine was doing its thing.

"Date of birth?"

"26th of June, 1274 NVC," she said.

"Parents?"

"Taiyang Xiao Long and…" she trailed off. _Now it's time for my deception skills Qrow taught me to come into play. _She pretended to think about it, then said sadly and a little worredly. "I…don't know… I have two different thoughts, but whish one is wite?" She coughed, her throat not up to long sentences yet. "Damn." _Damn cough, though it works to further the image. _

"Easy there, drink some more water and let the medicine do its thing. Rest, you need it," Dr. Gold said calmly.

Rose nodded, but then thought, _how am I supposed to drink when I'm strapped down?_ "Strapsss. Why?"

The doctor winced. "You were thrashing about when you were here. I had to sedate you and the straps were to keep you from hurting yourself, from like rolling off the bed."

_Okay, that explains that… but what happened to my clothes? I don't remember changing into the gown…_ "'Ow long was I 'ere?"

"Two days, and you were in and out of it for the entire time. Your team came to check up on you when they had time, or, when they could…" He gave Rose a suspicious look. "Do you remember what happened?"

Rose frowned, then made her eyes go wide. "Oh."

Dr. Gold snorted. "'Oh' is right. There wasn't any crippling wounds so Miss Schnee and Belladonna will be ready for the tournament, but they will have scars." _Good. They deserved them, even if they aren't_ my _teammates_. He reached and unstrapped her, letting her move about. Her body screamed in protest at the movement, so for once, Rose decided to take it easier than usual. _After all, it is for the act._

She managed to hold the glass in her had after the bed was raised up, though her grip was unsteady, and took a sip through the straw, once again feeling better. The doctor left her alone for a while and she took the time to organize her thoughts and to determine what she needed to do. _The Commander is going to talk to me soon… but he's not the Commander, so I'll have to reign in the overt respect part of that, and I can't call him Commander, just Headmaster. Also, the knowledge of Black Dust has either not been discovered, but judging from the Headmaster's interest in it, I think it's more likely that it's been suppressed for some reason. Doesn't make goddamned sense. We have the ability to use the Grimm against each other, why not use it? And any side effects of the Dust are negligible at best due to studies conducted. _

_Obviously I have to be careful. I don't want to get locked up in a detention cell awaiting interrogation. Those are… unpleasant for the recipient of our care. I should know, I spearheaded many of them against the White Fang and the so-called Ember Rebels. Traitorous fuckers. Sure the Faunus aren't being treated exactly with equal rights, but they can get that respect by joining the legitimate regime, like Belladonna did. _

_Anyway, I need to pretend that I have amnesia so I can at least get a grasp on this world, what I've gotten into. That Red-Black crystal Pet made must have sent me here, so eventually I'll have to make a new one to get back to my world. And… I think I need to turn chameleon and alter my attitude, as these people seem like vanilla people in the bedroom. Sometimes I'm surprised at how kinky Pet is, _she thought off-handedly.

_Though if Black Dust doesn't exist here, then I probably just lost my Nevermore from initiation, _she thought, a little sadly. Not because she cared for the monster, no, it was because she'd have to go through the whole effort of finding another impressive A-class Grimm again. And doing so was a pain in the ass.

She was drawn from her thoughts as she heard footsteps mixed with a light tapping. Her eyes widened as she knew only one that had that sound when walking, but quickly got control of herself.

Soon enough Ozpin appeared in her field of view. "Good evening Miss Rose," the Headmaster greeted.

Rose found it a bit more difficult to force down the programed response than she thought. "Good evening, ah, Headmaster." _Evening? It's evening already? Huh. _

"How are you feeling?" He asked calmly.

"I'm… somewhat sore all over," Rose admitted truthfully, though she was blocking the pain internally. Her throat had calmed down a bit so it was easier to talk.

"Understandable," the Headmaster nodded, "I know from experience how painful a full purge can be, and I was further along in my training than you are."

Despite herself, Rose blinked in surprise. "Sir? Sorry Sir," she immediately apologized, "it's not my place to ask."

"I don't mind. It was just another one of the many mistakes I've made," Ozpin admitted. There was silence for a minute before he spoke again. "I suppose you know why I wish to talk to you."

_Insecure girl, insecure girl._ "Am I in trouble?" She asked, hating how pitiful she sounded, though it needed to be done.

"Not necessarily," Ozpin said. "That's what I'm trying to determine right now. How are your memories? Have they cleared up or are they still cloudy?"

"I honestly don't think so," Rose said. "I-I recall things… but they seen different now. Like something's been flipped and twisted." _Like this world is. Use honesty to appear more truthful, but maybe not think about what's relevant to the conversation._ "Like Xiao… _Yang_," she ground out, "and mom," _not the slut, but where is Raven?_ "I'm… I'm confused."

Ozpin just stared at her for a moment and Rose forced herself to not fidget. _They're so alike, the Ozpins. Their expressions, their mannerisms. All he needs is a cup of tea and the picture would be complete. _"I do not know exactly what the crystal you activated did, and with the seeming results I do not want it tested. No offence." Rose just nodded to show there was none taken. "To avoid a repeat I told Miss Schnee not to make any more, so you don't have to worry about that."

Rose was outwardly relieved, but inwards was seething. _Damn, where goes making another crystal. While I know how to make Black Dust, I willingly admit I have nowhere near Schnee's skill._ "That's good." She said.

Ozpin nodded and pulled up a chair, sitting next to her bed. "I will be frank with you Ruby," she suppressed a wince at the name the Whore gave her. _Oh how I wish I could get rid of it, but not before she's dead… or at least in my world. Legal shit and all that._ "There have been many who have seen your fight with your teammates, and I'm sure that the entire school knows by now what transpired two days ago. Certain precautions have to be taken for appearances sake, and for your safety." _That's a far cry from the Commander who would steamroll over any opposition in this manner. _

"I understand," Rose said, nodding.

"Further, there's also your apparent memory loss to contend with," Ozpin continued. Rose nodded again slowly, internally bracing herself. "Just how bad do you think your amnesia is? Certain comments you made when the Dust was in your system have made a few quite concerned about your mental stability."

Rose thought a bit. "I don't think it's crippling. Whatever that Dust did… its confused me. I know people… places… but details and histories are mixed up." _Here comes my gamble._ "If I can say this, I read about something like this, selective amnesia. There have been a few ca-" she broke off in only a partially fake cough and took the time to drink some water, "sorry about that Headmaster."

He just waved it off, "I think you think that being in familiar places with familiar people might get your memories back. Am I correct?"

"Uh, yes Sir," Rose said, a little surprised that Ozpin correctly deduced what she was going for. _Then again, it is Ozpin, even with the different world thing._

Ozpin nodded, but stared at Rose in silence. Rose met his eyes, keeping them blank, but hopeful that she could be released, determined not to let any ulterior motives gleam through. After a moment he saw what he needed and nodded. "I do believe that can happen, Miss Rose. I'll discuss this with Dr. Gold, but I do think you'll be back in your dorm within a day."

"That's good," Rose nodded, and then paused. _I have to ask this otherwise it would look suspicious, but I really don't care all that much. I have to pretend I do though._ "How… are my teammates?" She made sure to make her voice quaver a bit, but not overdo it.

"Your partner and Miss Belladonna are recovering well. They are all worried for you and wish you a swift recovery," Ozpin replied.

Rose sighed. "That's good news. Tell them… thank you." _I almost threw up in my mouth saying that. _

"Very well. Please get some rest," Ozpin said, then stood up and walked away.

Rose waited until she couldn't hear his footsteps and then sighed. _That was difficult, more so than I though it would be. But I managed to get what I want. Now all I need to do is wait and recover my strength. Then I can observe and determine what to do… and what do I want to do? Well, return home, but that would mean getting Schnee to make another crystal, and that would take time…_ A malicious smirk came across her face. _I wonder if it will be as easy to turn this one into my new Pet as it was the old one. Something I'll have to work at when I'm out. _

_But what do I do here aside from trying to mold in? Reintroduce Black Dust when the Headmaster knows what it is? He'll automatically know it was me to do so. So that can't happen yet. _

_The other Rose, Ruby is probably dead or captured by now so they'll know it's not me, but hopefully the Commander won't send anyone after me as that would be extra resources he can't dispatch at the moment. So it's up to me to return back to my world. _

_That doesn't mean I can't have fun here though. _She chuckled to herself darkly but then stopped when Dr. Gold came by, putting on a tired expression to not raise suspicions... Well, any _more_ suspicions.

* * *

Ozpin was deep in thought sitting back at his desk in his office. _That was almost too easy. Everything felt too rehearsed, to… deliberate. Almost unnatural in its naturalness. Ruby's personality has changed, but I'm more concerned about her memories. I hope that the case is that her original memories have been blocked and need to be released. Though that Dust crystal might have done something more. The full capacities were never explored and combined with another Dust type the effects might have been drastically different. _

After a moment he hit a couple commands on his desk and brought up a recording of two days ago, and then hit play. _"Not that fucking whore cunt,"_ the voice of Ruby spat out, full of venom. "Our _mother_," Ruby gestured wildly between Yang and herself, _"Raven Branwen-Xiao Long… And what's that with her being dead?"_ Ruby added once she controlled herself, strangely sounding eager.

Ozpin fast forwarded a bit and strained to hear what Ruby said. _"That's the only feasible explanation."_ Then, the bone-chilling, slightly unhinged laughter started.

_"Miss Rose, control yourself!"_ Recording Goodwitch shouted.

_"It may not be real, but I don't even care anymore! The Bitch is dead!" _Ruby crowed. _"Ha ha ha ha!"_

Ozpin stopped it and focused on the expression of absolute joy of the knowledge that someone was dead on her face. _I would never have thought that adorable Ruby would have that expression on her face. What did that crystal do to you? _

_I wish I could inform Mr. Xiao Long of some of the concerns I have, but… for all his strengths there are some things that he can't know, and would break him further… Summer and Raven unintentionally helped with that. And unfortunately Mr. Branwen is out of contact right now, possibly compromised, so I can't inform him yet. I need to wait for him to resurface. At least I got James off my back for the moment, but he seems to be fixated on the wrong things, even though he thinks he's doing the right thing. _

_Now that Torchwick has been caught, things are slowing down, but I feel this is just the calm before the storm, and I can only hope this doesn't get worse. _He didn't really believe that though. Experience taught him that.

* * *

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**It will get worse, just like it did in the last couple of chapters of the show. God that ending. Still can't get over it. **

**I personally liked this chapter but I think many of you might agree that it was a little slow paced. Yes it is, but it is necessary, and will pick up eventually. Rose will have a grand time... heh heh. **

**Also, _Embler_, you got your answer with DuFrense. That'll be mentioned again in Rose's world. **

**So yeah, don't have anything right now. I'll be on vacation soon and then working at camp again, but you'll still get updates! Remember to R.R.F.F!**

**-OrangeGalen**


	16. Acts of Deception

**Man. This took way longer than I wanted it to be. Real life happened, so much of it that I really don't remember all of what happened. Suffice it to say this is way overdue and leave it at that... **

**And because it's been so long I needed to re-read this story. I fixed a few minor things (manly format and grammar), but if something slips by, whatever it is, please let me know. (But don't be assholes about it. Please.)**

**Remember, the Volume 4 trailer is on October 3rd! That's... actually in a few hours for me, but still! I have a small youtube channel where I react to stuff (same username as here) so you'll see my reaction to it there! **

**There's more at the bottom, so here's the chapter!  
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**Just a reminder  
*Warning* This story is 'M' for a reason!****  
(Though if you've gotten this far, you're a little late for this warning)**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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_Two days later…_

Yang was once again nervously pacing in their dorm, but unlike the previous time, her other two teammates weren't in much better shape. Anxiety and other emotions were clouding their thoughts as they waited for Professor Goodwitch… and Ruby, to come back. _Today's the day that my sister's getting out of the medical ward, and I hate myself because I can't fully convince myself to believe that it's a good thing. I almost don't want her to be here, and that scares me._ She freely admitted it. She knew that she had few weaknesses, and anything concerning her sister was one of them.

Yang, along with Blake and Weiss, had waited anxiously for any news about Ruby's status after she had woken up. Amnesia was uncommon, but not unheard of, when there wasn't a head wound as certain traumas can make people seal memories away. But this type and situation was different than anything they knew, except for Blake where things like that happened in certain novels she read. But that was the thing, only in _fiction_, not reality. And while it looked like Ruby, or Rose, had become less aggressive and cruel, at least on paper and observations done by doctors and teachers, there was still an undercurrent of apprehension if Ruby would relapse back or not.

And it was that uncertainty that was slowly killing the three.

For Yang, it was killing her a little faster.

_I've always protected my sister, but how can I protect her from herself? This isn't something that I can just punch until it goes away… How can I deal with the changes in her if she never- no Yang Xiao Long _you will not _think like that. Ruby will get better. She'll recover. That strange Dust must wear off sometime or she'll remember everything eventually…_

She took a glance at the uncomfortably black weapon over by the side of their room. Under further examination, they found that nothing was wrong with the weapon, which in itself was wrong. It should have shown some of the same signs that Ruby had, but after a thorough cleaning, it showed up with nothing. Standard Hunter metal that wasn't infused with Dust. The only Dust left was in the rounds and leftover used grain in the barrel from firing.

They didn't want answers on why there was so much dried blood on the paint.

Ozpin himself went over the findings and had to report that there was nothing that gave the indication that it had been altered or would change back. As far as he could tell, it was some kind of permanent transfiguring Dust that left no signature or residue. Weiss had even offered to let the Schnee Dust Company run tests, surprising the other two because they knew that Weiss hated to have anything to do with her father's/family's company. But Ozpin repeated that the knowledge of these particular Dust types used must not be allowed to spread more than it already had.

_And that didn't sound suspicious at all, _Yang thought sarcastically. _Although he did say that he did have some further ideas about it, but that's all. And he sounded… off, like during that first speech he gave. Distracted and… worried. Like he was just saying it to make us stop looking into it because he _knows_ what it does... or rather, he was surprised by what it _did_ do, like it wasn't supposed to do that. Yeah, thanks Professor… Real moral booster there… That was more sarcasm brain. _

Yang sighed. _That's something I've been doing for a while now,_ she thought to herself_. _Hesitantly she met the eyes of her white-haired teammate and raven-haired partner.

Blue and amber eyes met lavender, each pair reflecting the same inner turmoil. Blake was still moving a little gingerly, and was still wearing a bandage, but was more or less well off, save for the scar that would be there. Weiss was fine, but her face would have a second permanent scar as, like Blake's, it was slightly too deep for Aura to heal. If it were any other situation, Yang would say that women dig scars. But one: Weiss was seeing Neptune. Two: it was her own fucking sister that caused Weiss to have that scar! Not to mention the fact that those two were partners. Close partners no matter how much Weiss tried to put distance between them, since Ruby always managed to close the gap and then some.

_But now it was Ruby that created another gap. No: a goddamn canyon. And as much as I can reason that it was the Dust affecting her and that she wasn't in the right state of mind… I can't. For some reason it just doesn't feel right. It's like a stranger's wearing my sister's face. Or worse, a monster. _

It was mid morning and they heard Ruby had woken up in the evening after Ozpin's first visit. Ozpin had talked with her and had expressed his concerns about her memory holes and false patches, which didn't help the girl's anxiety any. What they determined was that the Red-Black Dust crystal had somehow severely altered Ruby's memories, the extent of which they were still trying to determine. However there were some basic things that Ruby did remember, even if some details were off, and it did give them a little hope that their Ruby would come back.

That hope was counterbalanced, or rather thrown off the scale, by the memory of what the Dust affected Ruby did. Just the brutality and remorselessness that Ruby showed was a complete stark contrast to the image that they held of her. For Blake and Weiss, they had known the bubbly, hyperactive leader for less than a year, but she had grown on them. She was caring and cheerful and was a good leader (once she got the hang of it, and they adapted to being on a team).

Blake saw someone who viewed the world as black and white, good guys against the bad guys. When they first met, Blake saw a naïve girl who wanted a fairy tale ending which doesn't exist. But as they got along, Blake saw more. Ruby was a girl who had been touched by hardship before, loosing her mother at a young age, and on occasion showed incredible maturity. Ruby didn't care that she was a Faunus, and saw her as a person. The conversation at Mountain Glenn only highlighted the fact that Ruby was incredibly determined and had a clear goal: to make the world a better place. Over time, some of Blake's pessimism diminished, most of it can be linked to Ruby's personality and beliefs.

Now, to have seen such coldness and hate in Ruby caused Blake to nearly withdraw, to flee like she had done so many times before. It was only her other two teammates that kept her from reverting to pre-Beacon Blake.

Weiss never had an ordinary childhood. Being born into the Schnee family was basically being born into modern-day royalty as she had everything that she needed. Delectable food made by professional chefs, tutors for everything she would need to know, butlers for her needs, and lots and lots of money. Though there is a big difference here between what she needed and what she _wanted_. For everyone that was around her she still felt alone.

Her older sister, Winter, helped alleviate some of the loneliness, but she had responsibilities in the Atlas military that put her in conflict with the company. Therefore the title of Heiress was thrust upon Weiss at an early age. No real friends, barely any contact with 'normal' people, and admittedly spoiled and unused to true hardship. True, there had been family members killed by the White Fang and other Faunus groups in retaliation for the company's employment policies, but in all honesty, it really was nothing that directly impacted her.

Indirectly was a different story, mainly through her father. Weiss desired to separate herself from the Schnee Dust Company, and so, enrolled as a Huntress at Beacon. Unlike Winter who became a special operative in the Atlas military, which abdicated her from becoming the heiress due to the oaths she made, Weiss was still next in line, and felt alone because of it. Weiss had almost resigned herself to a life of loneliness.

Then Ruby literally exploded into her life and, as poetic as it sounds, added color to it. Being on this unique and diverse team caused Weiss to open up beyond what she thought was possible. Yes there were moments that stretched her past what she could handle and she snapped, mostly caused by the different and sometimes conflicting personalities and life experiences. But throughout it, Ruby was there, trying to get Weiss to open up at her own pace though pushing her all the same. Somehow the little girl in a red hood wormed her way into her cold heart with that adorable face and those silver eyes that seemed to suck you in…

Weiss in real life coughed, getting back on track. The point was that Ruby was always the positive and cheerful one of the bunch. Not like how she was the last time they saw her.

For some reason, none of them wanted to go visit her in the infirmary. Not even Yang. And that in itself was another cause for worry and guilt.

But their reprieve was coming to an end. Ruby had been cleared to leave today and was probably on the way back, under Goodwitch's escort. And _WBY could almost feel an approaching doom.

It was Weiss who broke the silence first. "This is ridiculous!" She exclaimed, making Yang and Blake jump a bit. Yang looked at the white haired member of their team in surprise. "We're all just moping around as if we're the last survivors of a Grimm attack. We're doing nothing productive.

"Ruby's coming back." As much as she tried to power through it, she hesitated for the briefest of seconds. "And we're acting like doomsday is coming. What would Ruby think when she sees us like this? It wouldn't help her at all."

"You're right," Blake spoke up now after a moment of silence. She seemed like she was forcing herself out of a hole, which, metaphorically, she was. "We need to be supportive of her when she gets here. She still is our leader, regardless…"

"And my sister," Yang said softly, though they could hear her. "Even if she has memory problems, she still is my sister."

"Which means that she needs all the care and help we can provide to help her remember," Weiss took over.

"Yang," Blake stood up and went over to the brawler, rubbing her back comfortingly. "I'll say it if no one will," she took a breath, "we're all afraid. Of Ruby. _For_ Ruby. Of what she did. If she doesn't remember. But if we let that fear cloud our minds, then there's no way we will be able help Ruby."

Yang paused. _She's right. We are afraid of losing our Ruby. But we can get her back. If worse comes to worse, then we'll just put the pieces back together… hopefully it doesn't come to that._ She took a deep breath and sighed yet again. But this time, it was resolute and cleansing, blowing out all the tension and dread she was feeling. She opened her eyes. "For better or worse, we're here for my sis. For all of us if one of us needs it."

"We'll help her through this and help her get back her memories. And if we fail in that, we'll make new ones for her," Blake said.

"She needs to know that we don't blame her for anything," Weiss said. "Anything we do potentially can set back her recovery. We need to care for her as best we can."

"Don't baby her though," Yang added with a smirk. "One: that's my job and two: she hates being babied. Which is why I do it." The smirk grew larger as she remembered some moments back at home. _I'll bring those up at some point to remind her. _

Weiss and Blake nodded in agreement, their minor pact decided.

Then there was a knock on the door.

The gloom returned.

Though this time it was only a light grey instead of the black before. Which was a vast improvement.

As one they all moved to open the door and welcome Ruby back with open arms.

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_Half an hour ago…_

Even though she was confined to the medical bed, Rose had decided she wouldn't waste her time being idle and took it upon herself to educate herself with this Remnant.

Thankfully for her sanity, instead of just staring at the ceiling of the infirmary since she was confined to her bed, she had her scroll and access to the web and the Wi-Fi of Beacon, though for some reason the password had changed to B3acon#. _Actually, no, there is a reason. Separate worlds, _she had reminded herself after she pondered why. _Though I have to say it's really easy to access. No security aside from the poor choice of password. That can be explained by the fact Remnant, and by extension Beacon, isn't in the same amount of conflict as my world. _

Blazing through old history and current events, Rose was intrigued by the history and politics of this world, or more specifically, the differences. She soaked everything up, vastly interested in learning the history. She kept going back, trying to find if there was a split between this world's and her world's timelines, and if so, when was it. Eventually she had found it and one of the keys for the difference.

She had already reasoned that Black Dust wasn't used. The reason was either it hadn't been invented because the creator, Vikstein Noir, had never existed or his findings never announced as she couldn't find any data about him, or because someone for some reason was suppressing the knowledge. Going by the reactions of Ozpin, Rose figured it was a mix of the two.

But Black Dust was the key factor in the split. In her world Black Dust was one of the things that ended the Great War and led the Hunters to greatness. Hunters used the Grimm they enslaved to attack the rebels against the monarchs, annihilating their armies and forcing their surrender. But once the rebels were gone the monarchs tried to control and then destroy the Hunters. As such the Hunters fought back and ended the monarchies, establishing their supremacy.

Since Black Dust wasn't created here however, the War stretched on longer and had a slight, but very different outcome in the long run. Here, the Hunters never gained the power the Dust offered, and even though the monarchy fell after many years of brutal attrition, the Hunters never took over. The reason for that was because the rebels survived and won the war. As the victors, they eventually established the current political system of this Remnant and guided it to where it was today.

Another major difference was that Ozpin was suspiciously missing from these historical events. The founding of the modern kingdoms was established without him, and he only appeared when he was hired as a professor and eventually the Headmaster of Beacon. _Almost as if he didn't exist, or was hiding. Ozpin's far older than he lets on, if you know where to look. Unfortunately, I don't know where to look here. _

_It's interesting how one change can send a ripple through time and alter an entire world,_ Rose thought as she continued skimming through history, compartmentalizing everything she read and getting as much information as possible. _Without the power of the Grimm on their side, the Hunters became subjugated under the council rule… more or less,_ she amended as she read. _They've tried in the past to stifle Hunter autonomy here, but never succeeded or did with minor results, Atlas being the exception. As such, that's why it's the strongest Kingdom here. The power that the councils here have is… pitiful since there's no-one giving them power save themselves. At least back home the council was ineffective solely because Ozpin held the real power. _

_Though I have to admit, it's amusing to learn racism here is just as rampant as back home,_ Rose thought as she read yet another article, this time on the Faunus Rights Revolution. _A rather poetic name for a bloody war. _

Rose thought over what she had read. _Once again, the influence of Black Dust, or the lack of, changed the outcome of the Faunus War. Back home, the Hunters played another key role in fighting the Faunus forces, with the enslaved Grimm. The war ended in a technical stalemate and a cease fire agreement, but in actuality the Faunus lost. Barely any rights were given to them, and those that were are often violated without punishment. Here however, the Faunus all but won the war and were able to force settlements out of the kingdoms, though discrimination never stopped. And in some ways became even more subtle and malicious, as the people that participated in it needed to be more careful and cunning. _

_In both worlds the White Fang rose, but their methods and goals are very different though._ Recent news highlighted the differences between the two: one had been formed as a gruella 'freedom' fighting force, and the other as a peace movement until it turned into a militant revolutionary organization.

_After the war in my world, the White Fang rose almost immediately, continuing the war on a lesser scale, still fighting for concepts as equality and freedom. _Rose snorted to herself. _I'm not blind or fooling myself; I know that a lot of Faunus view the Fang as a positive thing for them, but it will only lead to their death if they continue their support, as they are a group of traitors to the legitimate government and should be hunted down._

Rose shook her head, _I'm getting off track here. Now, the White Fang in this world started just a tad later, but focused on peaceful movements and protests. But five years ago something changed and they altered their tactics, and changed their logo,_ she added as a side note. _They became more like my White Fang, but focused more on terrorist attacks and vandalism. But because of that, their cause is muddled and now Faunus view them with uncertainty to outright contempt. _

_Very interesting. _

_And another interesting observation, there's no Ember Rebels here. What changed? What forces at work prevented them from forming?_ The Ember Rebels in her world were a group of discontented antagonistic people who had the bright idea of trying to fight against the government for some reason, claiming that they were being oppressed by a tyrannical polity (slightly true) that seized power in a coup overthrowing the legitimate government during the Great War and is therefore illegitimate (false).

While there are no proven ties between the two groups, there are certainly a lot of similarities and a few instances of the 'you-help-me-and-I'll-help-you' scenarios. _Though I figure it's only a matter of time before they join together. But thankfully there are a few things keeping them apart, and how we're... encouraging the divide. _

But there was nothing like that here save for organized crime.

Though Rose knew there had to be something brewing. _Peace… the concept is nice but it's a lie. There's always _something_. _

Rose continued her information scrounging and found some interesting things, especially about herself. Or rather, the Ruby of this world.

_Apparently I stopped Torchwick from robbing that Dust store. Different than what happened in my world._ Rose stopped herself from growling. She hated the fact that the crook got away from her.

Anyway, the dock heist tried to take place again, though it was stopped with a 'collection of Hunters and Huntresses in training'. Pictures showed her team in the aftermath. And then a little more than a week ago, Vale was breached and Grimm attacked through a sealed off railway after the White Fang drove a train into the kingdom from Mountain Glenn. Once again, her team was there.

Rose zoomed in on the image of her alter. Though the quality wasn't exactly top notch, she could see a few differences. The main was the cloak. It was still the same red as when she first received it, undyed. Second was the weapon. She could see it was a smooth-blade scythe, and the paint was red as well instead of black. Minor differences in clothing aside, Rose couldn't find any video and therefore didn't know exactly how this Ruby fought.

_We're both scythe wielders, but there should be differences between our styles as she uses a straight blade compared to my serrated. I just don't know, and I don't like that. I want to be prepared. _

_This Ruby's personal history I know almost nothing about, though I'll assume that Ruby had a more coddled and… undisciplined life. Though one good piece of news is that Summer Rose is dead. On the bad side though, mom's MIA, and for some reason dad isn't on the Vale council. _

_This is going to be one of the most difficult things I've done, _Rose realized. _I'll have to blend in and hide my true nature amongst these plebeians and weaklings._ She laughed softly to herself. _A true test of my improv and bullshitting skills. Hopefully they won't catch on that I truly am not their Ruby… ugh, I guess I have to suffer being called that,_ she suddenly thought. _Though with all things, there's going to be a limit to what I can get away with my amnesia and false memory excuses. I need to be careful in how I act. I'll have to go along with the flow and carve my own person from the remains of the memories they have of Ruby. _

_Now I have two goals: find a way to return and see what I can exploit from this world._ Her lips curled into a foreboding smirk_. This should be fun. _

She heard the clacking of high-heeled boots and forcefully put on her mask, lest Goodwitch see her as she truly is and end the charade.

Shortly thereafter, the blond professor entered her field of view. She had a scowl on her face, but Rose knew that was just her normal resting face. "Miss Rose, are you ready to return to your team?" She asked briskly.

_And let us begin._ "Yes. Doc cleared me and I'm changed so I'm ready to go," Rose answered.

The professor nodded and said, "Well then, if you'll follow me." Rose slid off the bed and started following Goodwitch, keeping her face blank with the tiniest bit of worry on it. "If you haven't been informed, because of the severity of your… actions, you'll be placed under watch from the faculty for the foreseeable future. If there isn't a staff member around then the rest of your team or members of another team will be with you when you aren't in class."

_So I'll be under scrutiny until the Comm- _Headmaster_ thinks I'm okay then. Annoying, but understandable, if a little lenient. It'll make it more difficult to do what I want. I guess getting home will take some time… but I _do_ have time..._ "Okay. I understand," Rose said respectfully.

"Additionally, you will not be allowed to participate in combat instruction save for team battles, and then only in a limited fashion," Goodwitch continued. "You'll also be required to receive a medical check at the end of each week for the rest of the semester until the Vytal tournament starts."

Rose nodded, forcing down her pride as it wasn't called for and wouldn't help here. "Understood."

Rose noticed that Goodwitch was giving her a look that she couldn't pick what it meant. "Is… is there anything else?" Rose made sure to add a bit of a hesitation in her voice.

The look disappeared and Goodwitch shook her head. "Not at the moment. Frankly we're all concerned about you making a full recovery and what exactly that Dust crystal did."

"Any ideas on what the crystal did, aside from my memory problems?" Rose inquired, hoping to get an idea of what they thought and play along with their ideas.

"Several, but the most common is that it's some sort of permanent transforming Dust since your clothes and weapon haven't reverted back. That's enough for now, your team and sister are anxious to see you," Goodwitch changed the subject.

"I-I am too. I don't know what they'll think of me now." _Isn't that the truth? I doubt that Xiao Long, Belladonna, and Schnee really care. They just don't want to get flushed out of Beacon. _Rose blinked at her own thoughts. _No, this is a different world. I can't assume anything. They'll have different angles here too. I'll have to figure them out as well._

"They're all concerned about you. In my personal opinion, Team RWBY is one of the closest-knit teams I've seen in a while. I'm sure that they'll try to help you as much as they can after the incident." _Heh, if they only knew that I enjoyed every minute of it… aside from the Dust purge._

"I hope so," Rose said, hoping that she was convincing. They continued walking, conversation turning stale between them. Rose was constantly scanning her surroundings, taking in everything and if there were any threats nearby. That she didn't feel any wasn't a source of comfort. And the minor differences between her world and this one were just enough to distract her, her concentration being diverted. _The walls are a little lighter shade, _she noticed, _and the doors are a different design, but it still feels like Beacon if that makes sense. And it's really distracting. _

Eventually, Goodwtich stopped and Rose followed suit. She then knocked on the door. _Wait, is this their dorm room?_ She took a mental picture to remember since it was different than where her's was.

After a moment, the door swung inwards and Rose had to clamp down on her immediate reflex to attack as Xiao Long, Schnee, and Belladonna were all standing in the doorway, bringing on a bit of paranoia of them being so close together.

"Ruby!" Xiao Long cried out as soon as the two made eye contact. Her eyes are lavender. _It's disturbing to see them not red, _Rose thought. Though any rational thought left as the blond brawler charged forward, arms outstretched to the side. Instinct took over. Rose gave in to the reflex and used one of the few moves that would incapacitate Xiao Long without her Semblance kicking in.

Using her own Semblance, Rose shot her hand forward in a jab directly into Xiao Long's solar plexus. One of the weaknesses of Xiao Long's Semblance was that if she was taken out of the fight before it could build up, then she was easily taken out. And with a Semblance fueled jab that made her hand literally blur, she was definitely out.

There was an audible thud as her hand made contact, then Xiao Long crumpled with another thud to the floor, wheezing and gasping for air, blond hair splayed out around her.

_Huh. I'm actually surprised she didn't try to block or dodge like she normally does._ Rose kept the satisfaction off of her face and looked up, ready for any more attacks from the other two, but they just stared incomprehensibly between the gasping form of Xiao Long and herself. It was only when she felt the glare of Goodwitch on her that she realized that she screwed up somewhere. _Shit. _

Rose tried to salvage what was left of the situation. She forced her eyes to go wide, as if she was confused and shocked at her own actions. "Wha- I didn't-" she forced the next part, "Are you okay? I'm so sorry!"

"Miss Rose!" Goodwitch barked, surprised and angry.

"I don't know! It was reflexive!" She made herself sound angry. "I'm already screwing things up!"

Xiao Long weakly waved her hand from the ground, trying to convey the 'it was nothing' motion. "It's… fine…" she gasped out. "Give… me a… mo…ment…" each pause was punctuated with a little gasp of air.

_I suppose I should do something about this, to make it look like I care. _She looked at her two standing teammates. "Get her inside. Put her on a bed."

The two hesitated for a moment before they gently bent down and picked up Xiao Long and brought her inside. Rose made sure to have her face show the regret that she figured she should have but didn't actually feel as she followed them in, forcing her posture to be meek.

However, when she stepped inside and saw the layout of the room, she couldn't comprehend it.

_Blink._

_Blink._

She stood there, utterly dumbfounded before her brain found the track again.

_How in the fuckin' hell are the beds like that?_

Instead of the beds being all laid out in a neat format, _on the floor_ like beds normally are, they were in the rough approximation of bunk beds, or what bunk beds would look like if someone explained the general concept of what they were to a retarded five year old and told it to have fun recreating them.

One of the beds was being held up by four stacks of books on each of the second bottom bed's legs, which couldn't be safe in any way. But the absurdity of that set-up paled in comparison to the third bed, which was being _suspended _unevenly by _ropes_ wrapped around the frame of the bed that went to hooks that were _drilled_ into the ceiling, cracking the plaster. The only thing more horrifying than that was the fact that somebody trusted it enough to _not_ fall down and crush them as they put their own bed underneath that monstrosity.

_What._

_The fuck. _

_Is this?_

Rose was drawn out of her stunned state when Goodwitch roughly pushed her all the way into the room. Rose turned around and for once didn't need to exaggerate the slight fear she felt as Goodwitch glared at her, a slight snarl upon her face. "Explain. Now," she demanded.

_Apparently Goodwitch really isn't all that different in-between worlds. _Rose opened her mouth and began to say what she thought would be a convincing reason.

"I… can't really. It felt like instinct, just a reflex. The memories I have… they're all jumbled up. But many of what I remember have Xia-… Yang, attacking me suddenly. It just feels like reflex to attack when she makes a move, like she did just now."

"She was going to give you a hug, you Dolt," Schnee said, slightly accusing.

Rose blinked. "Well excuse me, but all my memories of X- Yang trying to 'hug' me are her actually trying to kill or hurt me," she then shot back, suppressing the urge to curse.

That made everybody freeze, even Xiao Long's breath hitched. Horrified looks were mixed with pitying expressions. "That's terrible," Schnee said softly.

"It is what it is," Rose said, shrugging. _The fact is that I just got used to it over time. It's almost routine for us to fight for our lives against one another. It keeps us strong though so I don't complain. _

"Then I suggest that you learn to control your… 'instincts'," Goodwitch said technically as a suggestion, but was anything but.

"I'll make an effort to," Rose readily agreed, because _I'll get found out faster if I don't. _

"See that you do," she said with a glare. "I'll leave you in your team's hands now." Without further ado, Goodwitch turned around and marched out of the room, the door swinging shut behind her with a thud. Rose could feel the silence settle in the dorm, but unlike many she relished in it.

Until she decided that she couldn't waste anymore time and get to work.

She turned to her teammates, scanning them in depth. Schnee's new scar was pink, but was mostly healed now. Her dress was more of a skirt now, which Rose had to admit, made her closer in style with herself. _But the lack of my pet collar around her neck needs to be fixed at some point. _

Rose shifted her gaze to Belladonna. She could still see the bandages from where she wounded the Faunus underneath her slightly altered clothing, or probably normal clothes for her. That bow on her head covering her ears was still there, and now Rose could see that it could fool the oblivious or the indifferent, but nobody that really paid attention.

Finally she slid her molten silver eyes to her half-sister Yang Xiao Long, who was now finally sitting up on the bed, recovering from the (on her half) unexpected attack. _Though in all honestly what did she expect, charging at someone with their arms open like that? It's practically broadcasting an attack._ Rose scoffed inwardly at the idea of a hug. _Pointless. I haven't gotten one since the Whore left, and the ones that she ambushed me with were unwanted. I've never asked for one. Never needed one. Plus it's a good way to see who cares about who. Handy interrogation observation. _

Rose sighed silently. _Let's get this moving then,_ she thought reluctantly, not at all eager to interact with these versions of her teammates. _They're probably going to be more unbearable here._ "Alright. We need to clear some things right now," Rose said. All of them snapped their eyes to her, and Rose felt a pleasant little shudder go through her seeing the emotions in their eyes. Though they quickly lost that and started listening to what she had to say.

"I'll say it right now: I am not Ruby, or rather the Ruby you knew. I have different memories after the Dust crystal and I remember things differently. I know faces and names and places, but not necessarily why or how. I remember doing things differently and I'll probably be going off of those memories until things come back to me." She toned it down now. "Everything's… jumbled up. I need… I need help," Rose looked down, as if ashamed of herself. "I wasn't in my right state of mind when I…" she trailed off. "But I feel terrible about it and I-I want to apologize again if I haven't already."

"It's alright," Belladonna said soothingly. "It's just like you said, you weren't in your right state of mind. You weren't in control of your actions." Rose heard the very silent unspoken, _'you still aren't'_ in that though, even if it was her own mind superimposing them onto Belladonna's words.

"If anything, it's my fault," Pet… Schnee said, one of her arms holding the other. "I'm the one that made that Dust crystal, even if you were the one that used it. I shouldn't have let you even touch it! I should have done something more to test it or not even make the thing!" Rose raised one of her eyebrows slightly at Schnee's outburst. _This is different, she actually has fire in her. Different than the fire, or the ice rather, she has that is indiscriminate in what it targets. It's… refreshing to see her have this kind of self-worth that isn't brought on by survival or primal needs. _

_I think it'll be much more fun to break_ this _Schnee since she has some spirit in her_.

"Weiss," Xiao Long said, having recovered now, "we've been over this before. Stop beating yourself up over it." _Well that's surprising, they actually managed to have a civil conversation for once. No, no, it's not the first time for them,_ Rose reminded herself yet again, _but it's surprising for me. _

"It's going to be fine," Rose said, going closer to Schnee and laying a hand on her upper arm. "I'm sure I'll have my memories sorted out soon… with your help of course," Rose added, saying it to everyone, but making eye contact with Schnee and doing that thing which made her Pet's legs weak. Putting even more onto that, she dropped her hand, but not before trailing a finger down Schnee's dainty arm briefly. It was enough to make sure Schnee felt it, but not long enough for the others to notice or get suspicious.

"O-Of course," Schnee stuttered, and Rose had to stifle a victorious grin.

"We'll stand by you when you need us," Belladonna said now, making Rose turn away from Weiss.

"I've always tried to be there for you sis, and I _will_ be here for you now," Xiao Long said, standing up. "I promise. We promise to help you through this. Whatever you need, we'll give it to you."

_Careful what you say Xiao Long, I may take you up on that. _

"Thank you," Rose said instead, nodding her head in the motion of thanks.

"Hey Ruby? Can I give you that hug now if you won't freak out?" Xiao Long asked carefully, almost nervous, as if asking again would warrant another attack. Or maybe it was the fear of rejection, of the 'No.'

Rose on the other hand, froze on the inside. She was repulsed by the idea of her half-sister giving her a hug. They've never got along and every time they appeared nice was to try and get some advantage over the other. There were no genuine feelings except severe distrust and toleration at the very least. Add to that Rose's personal feelings about contact and she was barely managing not to lash out at Xiao Long for even suggesting such a thing.

Struggling to control herself, she knew what had to be done. "F-fine." She braced herself as Xiao Long came closer. After a short eternity, the two pale arms wrapped gently around her and she was slightly squeezed against her older half-sibling.

There was a peculiar warmth coming from Xiao Long. It wasn't the burning heat that she normally did, but it was like a heater, with the warmth seeping into Rose's skin, going all the way to her bones. And the… hug, wasn't threatening or brutal in its strength. It was… gentle.

As Xiao Long continued, Rose remained stiff in her grasp, muscles ready to spring to action in an instant at the slightest hint of aggression or trickery. But gradually, despite her commands, she felt her muscles relax. A scent invaded her nostrils, smelling of lavender and cream mainly from the yellow mane that went down Xiao Long's back, with just a hint of Dust powder from the shots she used in Burning Celica.

_This… isn't what I was expecting. It's warm, but not burning. Gentle, not crushing. And there's something else that… I… can't identify. I don't like it! I can't-! _At least that's what she told herself. However, before Rose was about to viciously push away, Xiao Long withdrew, much to Rose's relief.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Xiao Long said as Rose got a hold of herself.

"Yeah… I am too, for the most part," Rose added. She exhaled out of her nostrils to get the smell of this Xiao Long out. "So, you all know the restrictions I'm under here, right?" She changed the subject.

"Yes, we understood what Ozpin told us," Schnee said. "We'll get you ready for the Vytal tournament in no time."

Rose grinned, "Good, because I've been getting ready for that." _It'll test my skills against the best this Remnant has to offer._ "I expect all of you to be ready in top cond-…" _Ohh… right,_ as her mind caught up with her words she remembered their condition now, and that she was the one to put them like that. "Scratch that, let's all recover first."

Xiao Long snorted. "Sounds like a plan."

Rose nodded. There was a short silence before Belladonna asked a question. "So what do you want to be addressed by? You expressed… dislike, putting it mildly, against your given name 'Ruby'."

"I still do," Rose growled before she controlled herself and had to put on her act again. "Sorry, but it's those damn memories and feelings. Memory me was strong on the subject… I guess that's something we'll have to work on then?" She made her eyes water a bit, and was successful when she saw all of them relax slightly. "And speaking of names, the memories I have of you, we all used different names, mainly our last… We… didn't particularly get along." _The exceptions include the incredible sex Xiao Long and I had with our partners. _

There were more uncomfortable looks around the room that Rose found amusing before Xiao Long said cheerily, "Okay, introduction time! I'm Yang Xiao Long, and I like to be called Yang. I'm your flamin' hot sis, literally sometimes! Eeh?" _Oh dear fuckin' god she does that here too,_ Rose thought as Schnee and Belladonna also groaned to various degrees.

"Anyway, I'm Blake Belladonna, partner to this idiot," she said dryly as she thumbed at Yang, who protested jokingly. "I like to be called Blake." As she said so, the Faunus sat down on the bed supporting the other with books. She hid the little twinge that she had because of her injury well, but Rose noticed it.

"And I'm Weiss Schnee, your partner," the girl in white said. "And you can call me Weiss."

"Okay then Weiss," Rose said, adding just the slightest hint of a purr in her voice before continuing on. "Y'know, you didn't need to be that formal about it. I remember your names, just not what you like to be known by here… But I suppose it's good to clear the air a bit."

"I guess so. This is hard on us too, R-Rose," Xiao Long, _Yang now_, said. "We all have to adapt," she said, sitting down on the bed Blake was on, and Weiss sat down opposite of her, under the monstrosity.

Rose looked around and finally asked the question that she had since she walked in. "Remind me again which bed is mine?" Three pointed fingers confirmed the answer that was the worse in her opinion. She slowly looked upwards at the hanging catastrophe and withheld a sigh. _Fuck me. If the Ruby from here exists still, I'll kill her just for making this._ "Yeah, I'm not climbing up on that now," Rose said.

"Do you not remember making that?" Blake asked.

"Nope." Rose popped the 'p', force of habit.

"If you're not going to sleep there, when where will you?" Weiss asked, questioning.

Rose decided to pull another one on her and raised an eyebrow suggestively. "Are you offering me something Weiss?"

There was a beat, then Yang started to laugh uproariously. "Oh boy! I guess you did learn a thing or two from me! And you now use them!"

Weiss sputtered around. "Whuh-that's-wh- _That's not what I meant_!" She finally shrieked.

"Oh. My bad," Rose said, loving how Weiss' pale face was slowly reddening. _So she's not as kinky as my Pet then. I'll have to train her later then once she becomes mine. _

A knock on the door quieted them and Weiss took the opportunity to get away from Rose to open it. Rose narrowed her eyes in suspicion at the person that stood in their doorway, all joviality lost.

Emerald Sustrai. She was standing there with an innocent expression of concern and friendliness, but as she looked further, Rose could see she didn't want to be here.

"Oh, hello Emerald," Weiss greeted the student from Haven.

"Hi Weiss," Emerald greeted, then looked over the heiress' shoulder to the rest of the room, "Yang, Blake… Ruby." She hesitated a moment when they made eye contact.

Rose unconsciously narrowed her eyes, trying to find out what the girl was doing. I don't trust her. I never have even in my world. She and her partner were hiding something and I didn't like it. If it weren't for the fact that I had no dirt on them I would have probably attempted to kill them.

"Hey Em," Yang greeted the green haired girl, "what's up?"

"Well I heard through the school grapevine that Ruby was feeling better and wanted to wish her to get well. My partner… saw what happened and I wanted to know if everything was fine with you guys."

_Oh, she's good,_ Rose had to admit, _but I know what to look for when someone's telling a lie. And this one isn't even a straight out lie, but a half-truth. But I'm better._ "We're getting there," Rose interjected coolly.

There was a beat before, to her credit, Emerald recovered. "Well, that's good news. Wouldn't want you dropping out of the tournament for internal reasons."

"Oh yes," Rose said, keeping the same level of cool, not breaking eye contact with the green haired girl.

"Speaking of internal team things," Weiss said, smoothly continuing on, "is the last member of your team here yet?" That got Rose's attention. Before it was just the other guy, Mercury, and her. If teams are still comprised of four, then that means there's a third member I don't know. Something I'll have to look into. The two from my world were hiding something, and it looks like it's the same here too. I still need to find out what though.

"No. Our last teammate's still held up back in Haven and told us they're not going to be here until the day before the tournament starts," Emerald explained.

"A pity," Weiss said, "We hardly see your team anyway."

"They're… not the most sociable people," Emerald said slowly, trying to find the right words.

_I bet they aren't_, Rose thought in her head. "Convenient." She said aloud. There was a confused pause.

"Well, I hope your teammate comes soon," Yang decided to ignore the comment. "We'll see how good you actually are on the battlefield!" Yang pumped her fist.

Emerald answered with a grin of her own. "I look forward to it. Glad to see you're all better now. I'll see you later then," she backed out of the door.

"See you later," Weiss replied as she closed the door behind her. RWBY was once again alone in their dorm, and silence permeated again. This time Rose didn't particularly care for it.

_Damn these restrictions that I have to follow. I can't pry anything from Emerald's team without breaking character now. They'll have to come to me, which won't happen. _

"What was that about?" Rose turned to meet amber eyes.

"What was what?" Rose asked back.

"Why were you so shut off from her? You were the one that introduced us to them in the first place," Blake pointed out, inadvertently handing Rose another tidbit of information.

"Well, I don't remember her much. Just a name and a face. And she seemed… insincere," Rose explained.

"What, about giving us a verbal 'get well soon' card?" Yang questioned.

Rose just shrugged. "I don't know, but something was telling me she was putting on a façade. Maybe it's just me."

"Maybe, but I guess it's better safe than sorry," Weiss said, albeit slightly reluctantly.

"I'm glad you agree with me to a degree," Rose said, making eye contact briefly. She broke it off and looked around. Now what?

"Sooooo… now what?" Yang unknowingly echoed her thoughts.

"I guess we could continue helping you try to remember more," Blake said to Rose.

Rose shrugged again. "Fine." She shifted around to get comfortable on Weiss' bed. _Now it's time for me to learn all I can so I can blend better and eventually gain an advantage here. Just because there's no way back now doesn't mean it can't happen again. From what I've perceived, our two worlds are almost on opposite sides in our convictions. There will be conflict and I intend on being on the winning side and the one that gets me more power._ "So, where should we start?"

* * *

As they talked, Yang grew slightly more comfortable with this new Ruby… _no, Rose now. I don't like calling her by her last name, but if it makes her more comfortable, then I can accept it for now. She's more guarded, and more aggressive still, but she's making an effort to remember. I know that memories can be hidden for a long time, but I hope she'll remember sooner rather than later, _Yang thought as she stared at the darker clad version of her sister, who was talking with Weiss.

Yang was slightly amused at the two's interactions now. _Especially since Ruby's now trying the moves on our Ice Queen. She's not as subtle as she thinks with the double-entendres and the right tones. I think it's just because it's_ Ruby _of all people flirting with her that Weiss doesn't know how to deal with it like she normally does. _A sudden amusing thought flashed through her mind. _Oh man, Neptune's not gonna' like this. Someone's trying to take his 'Snow Angel'…_ she paused. _And that someone's my sister… I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. I mean, I ship it, and the two are adorable together, but in actuality… we'll see. _

_I just hope everything's right up in her head right now. Or getting better if it isn't._

* * *

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

* * *

**Well, that's that. I'm not completely behind this chapter but it's the best I could do. *Shrugs* Anyway, there was a bit of an info dump at the beginning of Rose's POV and if there's any questions I'll be happy to answer them with a PM.**

**Now I want to kinda' cut-off the people that think Rose's playing Beacon like a fiddle. Aside from the fact that she _is_, most of Beacon, especially _WBY, is trusting of her and will mainly still see her as the 15 year old they all know and love. They _know_ that she's changed and it's still there in the back of their minds, but they _want_ to see her as the girl they know. Even though the suspicion remains, they're overriding it and projecting their desire to see only Ruby. And unless Rose does something blatant or is sloppy (highly unlikely), they'll continue to do so. Rose is being careful to cover those moments and uses excuses when she misses one. Meanwhile, much like an actor, she'll continue to get better with the roll that she's been given, making it harder to slip up. Additionally, she's starting her own mind games with the people there. Now that may backfire on her… but we'll see. ;)**

**Okay. 8,000 word ****apology accepted readers? Please?**

**So remember to Read, Review, Favorite, Follow! (R.R.F.F)**

**-OrangeGalen**


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